PTC Media Christmas Show

Merry Christmas everyone! The hosts of the fine Scouting podcasts at PTC Media have put together a great Christmas show for you. Steve, Buttons, Chris, Jerry, Shawn, Shannon, Emily, Liberty, and Kris wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Download episode by clicking HERE.

RSS Feed - http://feeds2.feedburner.com/MelroseScoutingAudioPodcast

This podcast is found on iTunes at
http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=307979159
and is a member of the family of Scouting themed podcasts at PTC Media found at
http://www.ptcmedia.net/

New Hallmark Snoopy Ornament

It looks like Hallmark did it again! There is another Scoutmaster Snoopy ornament to be found at your local Hallmark store. Or you can buy it online. This one features Scoutmaster Snoopy sitting at his tent reading a spooky story to Woodstock and his fellow Scouts. It looks like I need to make a trip to Hallmark myself.

I think I will buy two of these this year. As I was setting up my tree tonight I broke my Scoutmaster Snoopy canoeing with his Scouts ornament. Luckily, there is this stuff called superglue.

The new ornament can be found online at

http://tinyurl.com/yc3mtjc

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Flags For The Parade

 We had discussed it a couple times at committee meetings but I was still a little surprised when the troop finally decided to hand out small United States flags along the parade route in town this year. Our troop had not done anything for a parade for twenty years or more.

The flags were small plastic flags bought from an online retailer. Our charter sponsor, the VFW, agreed to pay for the purchase of the flags which came to nearly $100.00 for almost a thousand flags. The Boy Scouts would walk the parade route, a block or two ahead of the honor guard, and hand them out to the people along the route.

We thought this would be a great public relations project. The Boy Scouts would be in uniform and show their patriotism by giving away flags. We would be seen by thousands of people sitting along the streets, giving us some much needed exposure, something the troop does not receive for cleaning road ditches, holding paper drives, and working early morning park clean-up projects.

I arrived at the high school, the starting point of the parade, about an hour before things would begin. Two Boy Scouts were already present, with a third one arriving a short time later. And that was it. Only three of the nine members of the troop decided to join us for this project. At least that left us two people per side of the street. I would be riding my gas powered scooter which had a basket to hold the thousand flags. The Scouts would be walking.

We really did not know how soon we should leave before the parade started so we began when the honor guard began lining up at the head of the parade. Unfortunately, the honor guard caught up to us after only four or five blocks, and soon the parade was passing by us. Since we had to hand out the flags person to person it slowed us down and took much longer than we first thought.

The crowd loved the flags. We began by handing them out to kids but they were so popular that teenagers and adults wanted them also. We ran out of flags with a third of the route left to go.

So, we learned two things about this project. First, we need to leave about 15 minutes ahead of the parade in order to have a chance of staying ahead of them. Second, we will need to order about 1500 or 2000 flags for the next time.

Father's Day Card

 While shopping for a few graduation cards last weekend there was a Father's Day card that caught my eye that I just have to share with you. It features Snoopy, the Beagle Scout, and his trusty troop featuring Woodstock and his pals. I immediately added it to the pile of cards I was buying. Here is a picture of the front and the inside of the card. It is a Hallmark card, by the way.

I will not be sending it to my father though. I will be keeping this one as a part of my Scouting collection.

A Reading of "The Christmas Scout"

Late last night, on Christmas Eve, several of us from around the country joined Chris for his live "An Hour A Week" Christmas show. The chat room was very lively as we listened to Chris and the various Christmas music he was playing.

He invited us to join him on the show, so I thought I would try reading the story "A Christmas Scout". It is one of my favorite Scouting Christmas stories (not that there are that many too choose from). I recorded it while Chris was playing some music and sent him the mp3 file to use during his show.

The first thing I noticed when the mp3 was playing is that it did not take long for the chat room to become pretty quiet. Nearly everyone stopped typing to listen to my reading. I must have done a decent job, because after it finished people started writing about how well I had done. Even a tear or two had falling by the end of the story. Immediately, a couple people asked for a copy of the mp3. Within minutes Chris had a copy available through the PTC Media site.

After thinking about it this morning, I thought I should make it available through this blog also. If you would like to hear my reading of the story of the Christmas Scout which was written by Sam Bogan, all you have to do is click on this LINK.

And one more thing... I would like to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas!

The Lone Scout's Christmas

As Christmas approaches I have tried to find a new Boy Scout related Christmas story for you to read. There does not seem to be very many of them, which is not too surprising. But I did find one for you, thanks to the Cumberland Times of West Virginia. The story is called "A Lone Scout's Christmas". It was written in 1917 by Cyrus Townsend Brady as one story of a book titled "A Little Book For Christmas." The main character is a Boy Scout who is stranded in a Midwest snowstorm when the passenger compartment of the train in which he is the only occupant becomes detached from the rest of the train on Christmas Eve.

The story is a bit long to post as part of this blog, but here are the first several paragraphs of the story:

Every boy likes snow on Christmas Day, but there is such a thing as too much of it. Henry Ives, alone in the long railroad coach, stared out of the clouded windows at the whirling mass of snow with feelings of dismay. It was the day before Christmas, almost Christmas Eve. Henry did not feel any too happy, indeed he had hard work to keep down a sob. His mother had died but a few weeks before and his father, the captain of a freighter on the Great Lakes, had decided, very reluctantly, to send him to his brother who had a big ranch in western Nebraska.

Henry had never seen his uncle or his aunt. He did not know what kind of people they were. The loss of his mother had been a terrible blow to him and to be separated from his father had filled his cup of sorrow to the brim. His father's work did not end with the close of navigation on the lakes, and he could not get away then although he promised to come and see Henry before the ice broke and traffic was resumed in the spring.

The long journey from the little Ohio town on Lake Erie to western Nebraska had been without mishap. His uncle's ranch lay far away from the main line of the railroad on the end of the branch. There was but one train a day upon it, and that was a mixed train. The coach in which Henry sat was attached to the end of a long string of freight cars. Travel was infrequent in that section of the country. On this day Henry was the only passenger.

The train had been going up-grade for many miles and had just about reached the crest of the divide. Bucking the snow had become more and more difficult; several times the train had stopped. Sometimes the engine backed the train some distance to get headway to burst through the drift. So Henry thought nothing of it when the car came to a gentle stop.

The all-day storm blew from the west and the front windows of the car were covered with snow so he could not see ahead. Some time before the conductor and rear brakeman had gone forward to help dig the engine out of the drift and they had not come back.

Henry sat in silence for some time watching the whirling snow. He was sad; even the thought of the gifts of his father and friends in his trunk which stood in the baggage compartment of the car did not cheer him. More than all the Christmas gifts in the world, he wanted at that time his mother and father and friends.

"It doesn't look as though it was going to be a very merry Christmas for me," he said aloud at last, and then feeling a little stiff from having sat still so long he got up and walked to the front of the car.

It was warm and pleasant in the coach. The Baker heater was going at full blast and Henry noticed that there was plenty of coal. He tried to see out from the front door; but as he was too prudent to open it and let in the snow and cold he could make out nothing. The silence rather alarmed him. The train had never waited so long before.

Then, suddenly, came the thought that something very unusual was wrong. He must get a look at the train ahead. He ran back to the rear door, opened it and standing on the leeward side, peered forward. The engine and freight cars were not there! All he saw was the deep cut filled nearly to the height of the car with snow.

To read the rest of the story click on this LINK. By the way, this story is old enough to be in the public domain, so go ahead and use it in your troop and pack.

Christmas Parties and Presents

For over twenty years the Boy Scouts of Troop 68 have held a Christmas Party. Our community is predominately Christian, and all of our Scouts during the years have been Christian, so it was no problem adding this to our yearly program. The parties were held for many years in various homes, but as the troop grew we needed to use a larger facility, so we moved the party to the city hall meeting rooms. Now that the troop is down in membership I hold the party at my home. And yes, we have at least two adults at each event. There is that youth protection thing we have to follow, you know.

The party begins with a movie. I remember the first party held at the home of one of the few families in town who owned a new thing called a video cassette player. It was a big clunky piece of equipment but it allowed us to watch a movie in the family room, on a 19 inch analog television, I believe. The equipment has changed over the years. Now we watch the movie from a dvd on a 46" flat screen LCD HD television. Usually, we end the evening with a second movie.

Between the movies we have pizza, sodas, and snacks, followed by a gift exchange. During the earlier years we would name or number the gifts as the boys arrived, and each Scout would draw a piece of paper from a hat. It worked fine. During the last four or five years we have changed things a bit and made a game of it. The Scouts who wish to participate will bring a gift. These are put in the center of the room with the Scouts in a circle around them. We then pass dice around the circle. When a person rolls doubles he chooses a gift from the pile. Once everyone has a gift we open them to see what we received.

Now the fun begins. For the next ten minutes we roll dice again, passing the dice around the circle. If you roll doubles you get to change your gift with someone else in the circle. Once time runs out you keep the gift you have in front of you. It is a lot of fun, and can be very fast.

After the dice game we hand out the gifts brought for specific people, such as the scoutmaster and his assistant. I still own a few gifts (ornaments) that were given to me in the 1980's. This year I received several gift cards to be spent at my favorite stores and restaurants. I think the families know me pretty well.

Since we began the Christmas parties, I have always made an effort to get each of the Scouts a present. I know, I know, that is weird. But I have enjoyed doing it. The gifts started very small, just a red Christmas stocking with a candy cane. They have grown a little over the years, but I always have a budget I stick to. The hard part is trying to find enough of something so I can give each Scout the same thing, and stick to that budget. The years when the troop had nearly 40 Scouts were a real challenge. I remember one year in particular when I filled two shopping carts with soccer balls that were on a great sale at a large department store. I received some strange looks from people and the clerk as I checked out.

The troop held this year's party last weekend. We all had a great time. We watched two movies: Wall-E, and Indy Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. The food was good. The dice game was fun. And the gifts were great. I want to thank each of the Scouts and their families for the gifts given to me this year. I do not know what I will get with the gift cards yet, but you know I will think of something.

Scouting Christmas Stories

I do not know if you have heard or not, but Christmas will be here next week. It is only ten days away. Boy, am I glad I have all my Christmas shopping done and all the gift wrapping completed. Now I can kick back and relax, and maybe read a couple stories.

Speaking of stories, here are a couple Scouting stories that feature Christmas themes. I wrote about them last year, so I am not going to post them again. However, I will give you the links so that you can bring them up quickly.

The first story was written by a father of one of the Scouts who attended a Philmont trek in 1992. There was a contest at Santa Claus Camp and a few of us decided to enter it. Al wrote a great story. You can read it by clicking HERE. The article also includes the crew's Philmont Twelve days of Christmas.

The other story is one of my favorites about Christmas and Scouting. It was sent around the internet quite a bit last year. It is about a Boy Scout who learns about the true meaning of giving during the Christmas season. You can read it by clicking HERE.

Have you heard of any other Christmas Scouting stories. Let me know about them by contacting me through this blog. Thanks.

Getting To Know Me - Christmas Edition

Scoutmaster Jerry from Oregon recently sent me one of those "Getting to know you" emails in which you answer a bunch of questions and then send it to all the contacts in your email address book. I usually look them over and then delete them, but this one was a little different and had Christmas as its theme. It was kinda fun so I thought I would post it here as something for the spirit of the season.

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper
2. Real tree or Artificial? Artificial
3. When do you put up the tree? It has to be up by this Saturday.
4. When do you take the tree down? New Years
5. Do you like eggnog? Never had it.
6. Favorite gift received as a child? SSP racers
7. Hardest person to buy for? Parents
8. Easiest person to buy for? Godson
9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes
10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Christmas cards (and a few emails)
11.Worst Christmas gift you ever received? Pokeman cards
12. Favorite Christmas Movie? It's A Wonderful Life
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? After Thanksgiving
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? once or twice
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Turkey
16. Lights on the tree? Of course
17. Favorite Christmas songs? What Child Is This, Little Drummer Boy
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Brother's is only nine miles from home.
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Yes
20. Angel on the tree top or a star? My grandparent's St. Nick
21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas Day
22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Crowds when shopping
23. Favorite ornament theme or color? Traditional stuff, and ornaments given to me by my Scouts.
24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Turkey, mash potatoes, gravy
25. What do you want for Christmas this year? Already bought it. hehehe
26. Who is most likely to respond to this? Probably no one, I guess.

Twas The... A Couple Christmas Poems

During the Christmas season last year I posted a couple poems for the Christmas season, but which were based on the "Night Before Christmas". I thought I would save you the trouble of trying to find them by posting the links here so you can read them again. And again. And again.

The first one I found on a Scouting forum and is about how Christmas has become so commercialized. It is called "Twas The Month Before Christmas." Read it by clicking HERE.

The second one is my attempt at writing a Christmas poem. It is about the Boy Scout Troop 68 Christmas party, also done in the style of The Night Before Christmas. It is called Twas The Scout's Christmas Party, and can be found HERE.

Next week the Boy Scouts of Troop 68 will gather for their annual Christmas party, as I am sure many troops across the country and the world will soon be doing. We will be following our usual format: a movie followed by pizza and sodas, following by a gift exchange, followed by games and another movie. It is a simple formula for a social outing that everyone seems to enjoy.

A Scoutmaster's Thankfullness

The Thanksgiving Holiday has once again come to those of us in the United States. As I prepare to join my family in the annual turkey dinner I look back on my years in Scouting and discover there are a lot of things to be thankful for over the last three decades with the troop. I am thankful...

...for the ten great boys who are now members of Troop 68. They are full of energy and fun times.
...for the over 230 boys who have been Scouts in Melrose since I became a leader of the troop in 1980.
...for a fantastic assistant scoutmaster named Eymard, who has worked by my side for over twenty years.
...for a committee who is dedicated to the program and do the things needed to be done to provide the program for the Scouts.
...for past committee members and assistant scoutmasters for providing the leadership and program in the past three decades.
...for the seventeen young men who had the drive and desire to complete Scouting's highest honor by earning the rank of Eagle Scout while I have been their scoutmaster.
...for the readers of this, A Scoutmaster's Blog, and the fans of the two podcasts I am involved with: Melrose Scouting Productions and The Leader's Campfire.
...for all the new Scouting friends I have met online through the internet forums, podcasts, and Skype connections.
...for all the Scouts who grew up and moved on with their lives but still stay in touch and remain good friends.
...for a family that supports my Scouting "habit", and understands when I miss the occasional family gathering.

I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving holiday and safe holiday weekend.

Beagle Scout 2008 Ornament

A year ago I wrote about my trip to a Hallmark Store before Christmas and discovering an ornament featuring Snoopy, the Beagle Scout, roasting marshmallows around a campfire with Woodstock and a couple of his friends. I left the store with two of the ornaments, one to hang on the tree and one to store away.

Out of curiosity, the other day I decided to check the Hallmark website to check if there was a new Snoopy ornament this year. Guess what? There is! The new ornament is called "Beagle Scout Day Out" and features Beagle Scout Snoopy canoeing with his yellow bird friends. It is pretty cool.

On Saturday I will be traveling to St. Cloud for an activity with the Boy Scout troop. You can bet that I will try to find a minute or two to stop at a Hallmark store to pick up a couple of these new ornaments. Of course, if I really wanted to, I could order it online at the Hallmark website, but why wait for it when I can get it sooner.

Twas The Scout's Christmas Party

Twas the day of the party
for the Scouts of the troop.
Time for films, pop, and goodies,
and pizza (but not soup.)

One by one they arrived at
the scoutmaster's door.
They took off both their shoes
then sat on the floor.

The decision of which movie
to watch must be made.
It's a film about pirates for
which the scoutmaster paid.

The lights where turned off and
the Scouts settled down,
and the movie began in
full digital sound.

Ninety minutes later
the movie was paused
for the pizza had arrived
to the shouts of "huzzah!"
(The Scouts did not really shout that
but I needed something that rhymed.)

Then the Scouts formed a circle
on the living room floor.
Time for the gift exchange!
This was not time to snore.

The die were passed and rolled for
fifteen long minutes.
Each Scout wanted that one gift,
but could he roll right to win it?

There was candies and cookies,
a skateboard, and games.
There was not a bad gift so
there was no one to blame.

Soon the gifts were exchanged,
all the presents unwrapped,
and the movie was finished.
It was time for a nap.

The Scouts picked up their gifts and
zipped their jackets up tight
wishing "Merry Christmas to all,
and to all a good night."

The Christmas Scout

I first read this tale years ago in a book of short stories. The title caught my attention, The Christmas Scout, so I just had to see what that was about. It turned out to be a great tale about a Boy Scout who does a great Good Deed for the unfortunate in his community. A couple years ago I read this story to the boys in my troop at our December court of honor. I debated with myself for the last week whether I should post this story here on the blog and finally decided it was worth it.

By the way, I did not write this. It was written by Sam Bogan. I do not know if this is a true story or a fictional one, but to tell the truth, it really does not matter.

The Christmas Scout

In spite of the fun and laughter, 13 yr. old Frank Wilson was not happy. It was true, he had received all the presents he wanted, and he enjoyed the traditional Christmas Eve reunions with relatives for the purpose of exchanging gifts and good wishes.......... but Frank was not happy because this was his first Christmas without his brother, Steve, who during the year, had been killed by a reckless driver. Frank missed his brother and the close companionship they had together.

He said good-bye to this relatives, and explained to his parents that he was leaving a little early to see a friend, and from there he could walk home. Since it was cold outside, Frank put on his new plaid jacket. It was his FAVORITE gift. He placed the other presents on his new sled, then headed out, hoping to find the patrol leader of his Boy Scout troop. Frank always felt understood by him.

Tho' rich in wisdom, his leader lived in the Flats, the section of town where most of the poor lived. His patrol leader did odd jobs to help support his family. To Frank's disappointment, his friend was not home.

As Frank hiked down the street toward home, he caught glimpses of trees and decorations in many of the small houses. Then, thru one front window, he glimpsed a shabby room with limp stockings hanging over an empty fireplace. A woman was seated nearby....weeping.

The stockings reminded him of the way he and his brother had always hung theirs side by side. The next morning, they would be bursting with presents. A sudden tho't struck Frank--he had not done his "good deed" for the day. Before the impulse passed, he knocked on the door. "Yes?" the sad voice of a woman asked. Seeing his sled full of gifts, and assuming he was making a collection, she said, "I have no food or gifts for you. I have nothing for my own children."

"That's not why I am here, " Frank replied. "Please choose whatever presents you would like for your children from the sled."

"Why, God bless you!" the amazed woman answered gratefully. She selected some candies, a game, a toy airplane and a puzzle. When she took the Scout flashlight, Frank almost protested. Finally, the stockings were full.

"Won't you tell me your name?" she asked, as Frank was leaving.

"Just call me the Christmas Scout," he replied.

The visit left Frank touched, and with an unexpected flicker of joy in his heart. He understood that his sorrow wasn't the only sorrow in the world.

Before he left the Flats, he had given away the rest of his gifts. His plaid jacket had gone to a shivering boy. Now, Frank trudged toward home, cold and uneasy. How could he explain to his parents that he had given his presents away?

"Where are your presents, son? asked his father as Frank entered the house. "I gave them away," he answered in a small voice.

"The airplane from Aunt Susan? Your new coat from Grandma? Your flashlight?? We tho't you were happy with your gifts."

"I was......very happy," Frank said quietly.

"But, Frank, how could you be so impulsive?" his mother asked. "How will we explain to the relatives who spent so much time and gave so much love shopping for you?"

His father was firm. "You made your choice, Frank. We cannot afford any more presents."

With his brother gone, and his family disappointed in him, Frank suddenly felt dreadfully alone. He had not expected a reward for his generosity, for he knew that a good deed always should be its own reward. It would be tarnished otherwise. So he did not want his gifts back. However, he wondered if he would ever again recapture joy in his life. He tho't he had this evening....but it had been fleeting. He thought of his brother.....and sobbed himself to sleep.

The next morning, he came downstairs to find his parents listening to Christmas music on the radio. Then the announcer spoke:

"Merry Christmas, everyone! The nicest Christmas story we have this morning comes from the Flats. A crippled boy down there has a new sled this morning left at his house by an anonymous teenage boy. Another youngster has a fine plaid jacket, and several families report that their children were made happy last night by gifts from a teenage lad who simply called himself the 'Christmas Scout'. No one could identify him, but the children of the Flats claim that the Christmas Scout was a personal representative of old Santa Claus himself.

Frank felt his father's arms go around his shoulders, and he saw his mother smiling thru her tears.

"Why didn't you tell us, son? We didn't understand. We are so proud of you."

The carols came over the air again, filling the room with music--"Praises sing to God the King, and peace on Earth goodwill to men."

.

A Christmas Story about Santa Claus Camp, Philmont

If you have been on a Philmont trek that included the northern and central portions of the ranch, then chances are good that you have wondered through Santa Claus Camp. The camp is located in Santa Claus Canyon, north of Bear Canyon and southeast of Head of Dean Camp.

I have been through Santa Claus Camp a few times on my Philmont treks. Usually, it was an unstaffed camp, but in 1992 I was surprised to discover that it had become a staffed camp, complete with a volleyball court for the day and a telescope for the evening. My crew had a great time spending a day there.

The 1992 staff invited campers to write a story about how Santa Claus Camp received its name. A few members of my crew took the challenge. Al, one of our crew advisers, wrote a great story about the history of the site. Since it is the Christmas season I would like to share it with you.

There was a lot of snow that winter of 1853, too much for the horses and tired people moving through the mountains of northern New Mexico. They had left in a train of wagons on the Santa Fe Trail, but were down to one wagon for two families; and they were lost. The wagon master, who knew the way to Cimarron, had died of typhoid on the plains of eastern Colorado. Now, they were nearing exhaustion as they searched through the canyons for human life.

It was December 24, and there were tears in the eyes of the parents as they kissed their children good night, for there was a chance that some of them would never wake up.

The sky was clear, with uncountable millions of stars, but the beauty of the night was swallowed by the intense cold. The Borgerdings and the Hansons were typical pioneer families, and they were near to meeting the fate that so many others met on the Westward march.

It took a few minutes before they realized that there was a stranger at the fire, before their cold-numbed senses could react. He was an old mountain man that the Utes called White Cheeks due to the soft white beard on his face. He had on snow shoes and a pack which was full of freshly butchered mountain lion. Asking no questions, he stepped up to the fire and cooked his lion steaks for everyone. After eating he led them up to his cabin and safety.

Of course the children called him Santa Claus, and since he offered no other name, the parents joined in. The mountain man stayed with them through that long winter, teaching them the skills they needed to survive in the mountains. In the spring, he loaded his beaver pelts in his pack and headed for the Taos Rendezvous. The Borgerdings and Hansons followed the clearly given directions to Cimarron where they told the story of Santa Claus to its inhabitants.

White Cheeks never got to Taos, nor was he ever again seen alive. The people who come to his canyon on Christmas Eve know that there is an old white faced mountain man sitting over a fire, and even though no lion has lived here for many years, there are always plenty of lion steaks for everyone. If you ask him, he’ll tell you about the winter of 1853, and the families that called him Santa Claus.

Al's story of Santa Claus Camp is an excerpt of the journal I wrote about our crew's 1992 Philmont trek. The journal can be read at the Melrose Boy Scout Troop 68 website. You can read it and view pictures of the trip by clicking HERE.

Do you have any Christmas stories about your Scouts? Share them with us and leave a comment.

(The photo shown with this post can be found at
http://www.bottineaupartnership.org/pierre/bottineau2.html )
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The Beagle Scout Snoopy Ornament

Do you have a Scouting related ornament hanging on your Christmas tree this year? (I have a few that were made for me by members of the troop.) If you do not, but are looking for one, you may want to make a trip to a Hallmark store and take a look at one of this year's ornaments. It features Beagle Scout Snoopy roasting marshmallows around a campfire with Woodstock and a couple of his friends. It is a really cool ornament and may make an excellent gift for a Scout leader, or even an Eagle Scout.

I happened to be shopping last night and wondered into a Hallmark store to look at this year's Star Wars ornaments. The Beagle Scout Snoopy caught my eye first. Snoopy was in my hand first. Two Snoopy ornaments were in my shopping bag when I left the store. I did not buy any Star Wars ornaments, although the Millennium Falcon looked pretty sweet.

I am looking forward to hanging Beagle Scout Snoopy and his campers on my tree tonight. It will be a nice addition to the other Scouting ornaments already on the tree.

Do you have any Scouting ornaments decorating your house? What are they?
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The Philmont Twelve Days Of Christmas

In August of 1992, I was hiking through Philmont Scout Ranch on my third trek with a crew from Melrose Boy Scout Troop 68. Our crew included ten Scouts and two adult advisers, one of the boy's father and myself. It was a typical trek through the mountains until we arrived at Harlan Camp. For some unknown reason we got into the Christmas spirit. Here is an excerpt from the journal I wrote about the trek:

Harlan Camp is a welcome site. My right foot has just joined the left in protest. We will be doing shotgun shooting at 3:00 and burro racing at 7:00. Advisor’s coffee will begin at 7:00 also. It this a hint as to what we will be watching? Our campsite for the night is a nice one. It has tall trees and a few big rocks to climb on. It is also fairly flat. We should get a good night’s sleep tonight. The only drawback is that it is a way away from the program areas.

As we finish lunch cleanup I hear Tim singing the Christmas song, Merry Christmas. Did he forget where he was? Did he forget what time of year is was? Did he give me a fantastic idea for something to do tonight? You bet. I talk to Tim about having Christmas at Philmont tonight. We can decorate a tree with rope for tinsel and sierra cups as ornaments. We could sing carols around the fire and have a gift exchange. Tim likes the idea. Josh thinks it sounds like fun. So do most of the others. Tom kind of crinkles his nose at the idea. Ross is not too enthusiastic about it either. I don’t get a chance to talk to Al about it until later.

Supper is delicious. There is very little mash potatoes, gravy, beef, or lemon pie left over when the group finishes.

Al and I both went to advisor’s coffee which began at 7:00. The porch has a swing on it. Al and I claim it for our own as we visit with the advisors and staff. There we discovered that our friends who were with us at the beginning of our trek are back with us after a short split apart. These leaders are the ones who were so sick at the start of their trek.

The burro races, tonight’s activity, are set to begin at 7:30. A few of the older scouts were not very excited about participating in this event. Yet, when the group arrives the whole crew is present. I am glad to see that. They head down to the corral which is just a bit downhill from where we advisors are drinking our coffee and hot chocolate. The races will be held in the open area in front of us. We will not even have to leave the porch.

The crews choose their own burros from the selection in the corral. The first heat, in which two burros will race, does not include us. The second heat does. The gang chose a donkey with the name of Big Louie. According to the odds posted on the lodge the odds on Big Louie are three to one. Not bad. The race consists of three scouts ‘leading’ the burro down the raceway. One scout holds on to his reins while the other two make noise and try to coax the critter along. At mid point three other boys take over and bring the animal back to the starting point which is now the finish line.

We won our fist race, but not because of our amazing speed and animal handling skills. The other team lost control of their burro, providing us with the chance to pass them and win. The third heat had all four teams involved. This will be the championship race. We have Daryl as our steed, four to one odds. Josh, Nathan and Ross will guide the animal through the first half. Tim, Jason, and Corey will lead Daryl through the last half. Tom and I are standing on the sidelines with our cameras to capture the thrill of the event. We win easily. The guys are riding high as we walk back to camp. Tonight’s Christmas party should be a good one since everyone is in such a good mood. Al has stayed behind to wash out our cups.

When Al arrived back at camp he informs the group to go back up to the lodge. It seems that the group which wins gets more then just recognition. There is a prize waiting for us. Spirits soar as we parade to the lodge once again. The staff tries to make a bit of a ceremony out of it as they present Josh with a package of...pinto beans! Ha ha! Josh hands them to Jason as the staff hands over the real prize ... a half gallon of cold, fresh milk! It could have been a bottle of champagne as far as the group was concerned. We had not had any milk since we left tent city a week ago. Christmas has truly come to Harlan for the members of 729G.

The crew proudly carried their prize back to camp. The carton will be opened during our Christmas celebration. First we need to decorate the campsite. A short but wide evergreen-like bush next to the campfire ring is chosen to be our Christmas tree. Rope is used for tinsel. Sierra cups, bandannas, caps, and the flag are used for ornaments. Corey donates his extra underwear for the star at the tree top.

Everyone gathered around the fire as the milk carton is opened. Al pores as everyone holds their cup out to be filled. Even Tom, who is allergic to a chemical in the milk, has a glass. Eleven cups clink together as Josh makes a toast. I am busy capturing this Kodak moment. The campfire begins with Al rereading his Christmas story about Santa Claus camp. (As I listen I think to myself that this would be a good Christmas tradition at our troop’s annual Christmas party back home.) Singing Christmas carols follows. The crew has a great time singing Jingle Bells, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, and Santa Claus is Coming to Town.

The Twelve Days of Christmas has new verses as we begin to sing this favorite carol. Each of the twelve of us takes a verse and made it reflect something we have come across at Philmont. We have a lot of fun doing this and are rather proud of our song when we finish.

The Philmont Twelve Days of Christmas.
On the twelfth day at Philmont
my ranger gave to me;
twelve meal packs (Tom)
eleven Sierra cups (Tim)
ten hikers hiking (Josh)
nine bottles of iodine (Nathan)
eight backpackers packing (Ross)
seven teriyaki helpings (Corey)
six good meals (Paul)
a five mile hike (Jason)
four hot showers (Al)
three dirty socks (Peter)
two Powerbars (Greg)
and one pemmican bar. (Steve)

We did roses and thorns next. Almost everyone agrees that today’s rose is winning the burro race, teamwork, and the milk. Tom is not feeling very well. He may have what Al had yesterday. The campfire came to a close with us singing Silent Night and the Philmont Hymn. By 9:00 we were in bed. We plan to get up at 6:00 tomorrow morning.

If you would like to read the whole journal about the 1992 Philmont trek then check out the troop's high adventure page at http://melrosetroop68.org/highadventure.html
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The Christmas Party.

Since the beginning of time, or at least since the early eighties, Boy Scout Troop 68 has held a Christmas party. It has become such a tradition that the Patrol Leader's Council would never think of planning a year's program without the party. Everyone enjoys it too much to drop it.

During those first years the party was held at someone's house, usually a house with a basement recreation room. One family had one of those new fancy things called a video cassette player/recorder (vcr). It was a big odd looking box that played tapes of movies. That began the tradition of playing movies and watching them on the television, because soon almost every house had a vcr tape machine. These days we use dvd players.

The party would be held at one family's house for a couple years and then move on to another family's. When the troop's membership grew to over thirty Boy Scouts we had a hard time finding a home to host the party. We finally moved to the city hall meeting rooms which gave us plenty of room. Our membership is down again so now the party is held at my home which makes it a lot easier for me. I do not have to haul stuff, like presents, to the party site anymore.

The party begins at 6:30 in the evening and ends about 11:00. We begin by watching one of the two movies. (Have you ever tried to find a movie that appeals to both 11 year olds and sixteen year olds? It is a challenge.) Then comes the pizza, snacks, and soda. A gift exchange is held for those who wish to participate, and wish to risk the roll of the dice. The evening raps up with the second movie, although some of the Scouts decide to play games instead of watching the film.

The party is a great "no pressure" troop activity. There is no knot tying, no advancement requirements, and no skill learning. Uniforms are not worn. It is just a time to have fun and be with friends. Everyone goes home with at least one present.

And sometime during the course of the evening we pause to remember the real reason for the season.
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Twas the Month Before Christmas

Here is a little Christmas poem for you. I saw this on a Scout forum of which I am a member. I thought this was too good not to pass on to you all. Some of you may have seen this already since it was going around last year already. Enjoy.

*Twas the month before Christmas
*When all through our land,
*Not a Christian was praying
*Nor taking a stand.
*See the PC Police had taken away,
*The reason for Christmas - no one could say.
*The children were told by their schools not to sing,
*About Shepherds and Wise Men and Angels and things.
*It might hurt people's feelings, the teachers would say.
* December 25th is just a "Holiday ".

*Yet the shoppers were ready with cash, checks and credit
*Pushing folks down to the floor just to get it!
*CDs from Madonna, an X BOX, an I-pod
*Something was changing, something quite odd!
*Retailers promoted Ramadan and Kwanzaa
*In hopes to sell books by Franken & Fonda.
*As Targets were hanging their trees upside down
* At Lowe's the word Christmas - was no where to be found.
*At K-Mart and Staples and Penny's and Sears
*You won't hear the word Christmas; it won't touch your ears.

*Inclusive, sensitive, Di-ver-si-ty
*Are words that were used to intimidate me.
*Now Daschle, Now Darden, Now Sharpton, Wolf Blitzen
*On Boxer, on Rather, on Kerry, on Clinton !
*At the top of the Senate, there arose such a clatter
*To eliminate Jesus, in all public matter.
*And we spoke not a word, as they took away our faith;
*Forbidden to speak of salvation and grace

*The true Gift of Christmas was exchanged and discarded
*The reason for the season, stopped before it started.
*So as you celebrate "Winter Break" under your "Dream Tree"
*Sipping your Starbucks, listen to me.
*Choose your words carefully, choose what you say

*Shout MERRY CHRISTMAS, not Happy Holiday!