Values to Live By

Last night I attended my brother's crossing over ceremony. During the ceremony, the Boy Scout Law, and others, were recited. I thought to myself, as I watched the pretend Indians reading a fake buffalo hide, that the values the Boy Scouts are supposed to live by are aplicable and useful to everyone, including non-Boy Scouts like myself; that everyone should try to follow them.

A Boy Scout is: Trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent. All you Boy Scouts should be very impressed because I am typing this from memory, having lived with a Cub Scout for many years. Now that I have committed these virtues to memory, it is time to endeavour to live by them, a feat I have not come very close to completely achieving.

There are several more, er, things they have to memorize, also very worthy accomplishments. The Boy Scout Motto is: Be prepared. This is especially important for a Christian, emphasized in 2 Peter 3:15 "Always be prepared to give an answer to anyone who asks the reason for the hope that you have, but do so with gentleness and respect," another wonderful piece of wisdom I have memorized.

The Boy Scout Slogan is: Do a good turn daily! (Alright, I admit, I looked that one up. Do I get points for honesty?) If everyone in this world did just one good thing for someone besides themselves, our world would be a much better place to live in. The Outdoor Code is: 1) Be clean in my outdoor manners, 2) Be careful with fire, 3) Be considerate in the outdoors, and 4) Be Conservation-minded. Very admirable things to live by.

Notice, these codes and rules to follow are written in an active tense. BE prepared, BE considerate, BE trustworthy. It doesn't say "Know that you are supposed to be prepared." It says to do it! I, and many other Boy Scouts, have memorized these codes and rules, now it's time to strive to accomplish them. Be the best you can be.





Alright, alright! I looked the Outdoors Code up too.