The Scoutmaster Minute

A while ago… back when I went through my Scoutmaster training, an old Scoutmaster stood up at our Camp fire and in dramatic fashion delivered a Scoutmaster minute that I have passed on many times.
It is a timeless lesson. The reason I am posting this now, well, I ran into that Scoutmaster recently and talking with him I realized that he lives it daily. A great example and he understands which keys get him through life.

Think about your key ring… On mine I have a key to my house, a key to my car, the key to get into the meeting hall and a key to get to our Troop gear. I have a key to unlock my trailer and a key that opens the shed in the backyard… and there is a key that I have no idea as to what it opens, but I won’t get rid of it just in case I find the lock it matches.
The point is I can not live with out these keys and loosing them throws me in to shock, I have to elevate my feet wrap up in a blanket and stay calm when I misplace them. They are that important to me, and to others.

I have another key that is important to me.. the Scout Handbook.
This book is the key to many adventures and the path on the trail to Eagle.
It is a key that opens doors in life teaching lessons about the way a man should live. It unlocks a code that we all should live by, this code is called the Scout law.
It tells the story about citizenship and stewardship and how we should act in the outdoors.
This key shares lessons on how to help other people and ourselves.
The Scout handbook is a key that is just as important as the keys on my key ring. Without it to open the doors of Scouting we may miss many opportunities.

Think about the Scout handbook as a key and watch it unlock those opportunities.

I am a collector of Scout memorabilia. In my collection is my Scout handbook, yeah… my Scout handbook from Scout to the rank of Life. I love to look at it. What I really appreciate is that in the first 20 pages, just like today… we can open the door to Scouting! We get our code and password.. The Scout oath and Law and Do a Good Turn daily!
We unlock the adventure with BE PREPARED! And finally we see that there are pages and pages that follow that will teach us things about the rest of our lives.

So, if I were to recommend a book to the top 10 list…
The Scout handbook. Key to Scouting!