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Scoutmaster Moment This past week was the one year anniversary of living in the shadow of a pandemic.  I know of people who refer to then as “The Before Times”, when we could go out without masks, be in classes,  hold regular Scout meetings indoors.  It sounds like a something out of a Science Fiction novel, for that matter there have been times it felt like living in one too.  Despite the upheaval, the uncertainty and the disturbing shortages of toilet paper and bread flour, we made it through the past year.  As a Troop we pivoted quickly to virtual [...]

Scoutmaster Moment Perseverance carries us through efforts in life, this is true for in school, learning new skills for fun or by direction, in scouts, and now as we push through a pandemic.  Vaccines are rolling out and I know more and more people who have had one or even both doses, FCPS has some students heading back into school buildings. Today was the last day fo 2021 MBU, with many completed merit badges reflecting new skills practiced and many that are within reach.  For the record, the Cooking MB had some tasty bacon and toasty fire going.  We expect [...]

Scoutmaster Moment We had a great outing this weekend, braving cool temps and snow covered forest to hunt down some geocaches in Conway Robinson State Forest.  Snow on the ground gave great opportunity to see evidence of forest animals. We saw lots of prints in the snow from deer, rabbit, raccoon, and even what appeared to be a squirrel digging up an acorn stash.  The paths were tricky at times with snow, ice, mud, and water - but all the hidden geocaches were found, Scouts learned a new activity and had fun doing it. I call it a win.  I’m [...]

Scoutmaster Moment Today is President’s Day, held on (or closest Monday to) George Washington’s birthday and now often celebrates Abraham Lincoln as well.  Both presidents are known by all Americans, and beyond, as our first and sixteenth presidents. for founding our Presidency and restoring our Union.  We see them as always successful in winning a Revolutionary War, the Civil War and winning two presidential elections.  But those are the successes we see in only skimming our history, if we dig deeper we see that both of them worked hard through many setbacks to gain those successes.  Washington was denied a [...]

Scoutmaster Moment This week was all about the hiking.  Tuesday’s meeting was preparation info presented by Rascal Rabbits and Saturday was hike execution with a planned 5-mile hike around Burke Lake.  We went a bit above and beyond, totaling 6 miles and working off a requirement for newer scouts while everyone had a good time on a beautiful Spring-like day. After so much cold weather and not seeing members of the Troop in person a nice walk in the woods around a lake was just the thing I needed, and it reminded me of many family walks around Walden Pond [...]

Scoutmaster Moment Today marks the first significant snow we have seen in two years.  While it wasn’t quite as much as I’d hoped might fall, it made the world around us beautiful in shades of white and gray as the wet snow clung to the trees.  How did you spend the day as it fell? In some ways the amount was almost perfect as it didn’t require much shoveling, which left the day to walks, games, and hot cocoa making. A great way to pause some of our usual running around and appreciate Nature. Whose woods these are I think [...]

Scoutmaster Moment This week was our first full week of school and work after Winter Break, always a tough re-entry.  Wednesday January 6th is a notable day as “hump day” as halfway through the week, Epiphany or Three Kings Day,  and per the US Constitution the day that the presidential election is certified by the US Congress. This is largely a ceremonial activity, until it wasn’t. I know many of us were glued the TV watching news in disbelief as the Capitol was overrun. Our family had visited the building on a Cub Scout trip many years ago, we know [...]

Scoutmaster Moment A new year has rolled around, welcome 2021! 2020 is in the books, surely to be studied by historians for many years to come as a tumultuous time with a pandemic, historic election (and aftermath), and civil unrest related to our nation’s continued grappling with racism and its effects. While it was a roller coaster of a ride, the Troop did well in 2020; coming in 2nd in our first Sully District Klondike, doubling in size to 15 Scouts by December, adapting to pandemic by switching to all virtual, and back to in-person without missing a meeting, and [...]

Scoutmaster Moment This time of year everyone has an extra twinkle in their eye.  This past week the troop had the annual gift exchange, a bit different from last year’s due to COVID and the impracticality of doing another lock-in overnight in the gym, but quite fun nonetheless as everyone enjoyed the opening of gifts and the excitement as gifts that were then swapped around.  I have found that as much fun as it is in receiving a fun or well-thought out gift, the giving of one is immensely more satisfying. Snow this time of year adds to the festivities, [...]