A Scoutmaster's Blog

The Boy Scouts of Melrose Troop 68 enjoy performing in front of an audience. That is why they have done the annual Laughs For Lunch Show for eleven years. The Scouts also enjoy watching and being a part of campfire programs during camporees and summer camp. That is where they get many of the ideas, skits, and songs that they perform.

During the 2002 Laughs For Lunch Show two of our older Scouts did the Candy Store skit. This skit has been a popular one for the Scouts of Troop 68 since they first saw it performed at a summer camp campfire in the 1980’s. During this version of the skit, Jacob and Enrico, the two Scouts, decided to have a little extra fun with it. They knew this was probably the last time they would perform the Candy Store as Boy Scouts.

I think the two guys had planned a surprise before they went out on the stage. I believe they already had the “volunteers” in mind they would choose to be in the skit. The horsie ride was a new addition to the skit that we had never done before. Enrico chose his father to play that part. Jacob’s mother became the cash register. The part of the bench/counter that “broke down” was a buddy of theirs who had earned the rank of Eagle Scout. All the volunteers except one had already seen the skit and knew the punchline, but they were great sports about it and went along with the fun.

Have fun watching this podcast. It is a longer one, over eleven minutes, but I think you will enjoy it. Have your Scouts watch and practice it for their next campfire program.

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Boys love to play games. They want to be physical. They live for competition. “Rough and tumble” is their middle name. I am the first to admit that now that I am in my forties I am not quite as active playing the physical games with the Boy Scouts as I was when I was in my twenties. It seems as each year passes I am a little more content to stand on the sidelines and watch or referee.

Our troop has moved its weekly meetings into the local Catholic school’s gym for the winter months. This means the Scouts can start playing their favorite games again, bombardment and “Wizards and Warriors”. Both games involve bursts of running, ducking, dodging, a bit of strategy, and a lot of trying to hit the opponents by throwing balls at them. The boys play to win. They play hard. And they have a lot of fun.

The best thing about watching the Scouts play games and sports during the troop meetings and activities is that although they play hard and competitively they do not keep track of the score very well. Many times, if you ask them what the score is during a basketball game they may know who is winning, but they may not know what the point totals are. They do not care about the points. They are there to have fun and be with their friends.

Here is another example of the Scouts gameplay. Monday night, during the troop meeting, the nine boys played Wizards and Warriors. As I got the balls from the storage room I expected the boys to be choosing teams. I thought they would divide the older and younger Scouts into teams with equal skill levels. I was surprised to see the younger Nighthawk patrol on one side of the gym and the older Wolves patrol on the other side. This should not take too long, I thought to myself.

The first game lasted much longer then I thought it would. The younger boys did a great job of holding their own against the older boys. My assistant and I, watching from the sidelines, were having fun just watching the Scouts. I am always amazed at how fast and nimble they are. The game finally ended with the Wolves as the winners.

As the second game began I noticed the younger boys were playing a little different. They had learned a couple things from the older boys during the first game. Both teams were still playing hard but the Nighthawks had added some new strategy into their game. When the last ball was thrown it was the Nighthawks who won the second game.

Well, of course we now had to have a tie breaker. One more game. Once again they boys played to win. This time the older Wolves had to adapt their game to go beyond the Nighthawks. Although the Wolves were victorious in the end I got the feeling that no one really cared. True, the Wolves had proven they were still the dominant patrol, but the Nighthawks had proven they were a patrol that could win games also. I got the feeling that the only thing that really mattered is that all the boys had fun.

That spirit of fun is missing in so many things that our youth participate in these days. Take high school sports, for example. There is so much emphasis on winning that the spirit of fun has been lost. I have been a part of both worlds, and to tell you the truth, I think boys learn more from the fun of Scouting.