Finding Anchors in the Storm

September 2017, I signed up to be an assistant scout leader helper.

Not the one in charge.

Not the one making any plans.

Not the one being responsible for anything other than making sure a group of 8 to 11 year olds are kinda sorta doing and learning what they are supposed to.

Fast forward to our new group being formed and I got a quick promotion.

I did it to myself….but still. What?

Up until this point, I had never taken lead at any scout meeting. But I was trying to learn as much as possible.

Once I volunteered as Tribune, I reshifted the knowledge I was learning and soaking up so that I would start digesting it and categorizing it in a way that will help me in my Pack Leader position.

Our 1st field day is next Sunday. And I am finally putting the finishing touches on what activity I have planned for kids that are TW age.

Part of this journey to becoming a Rover Scout Leader, is discovering more about who I am.

I have always thought I needed the approval from everyone, and if even 1 person disagreed….well then in the trash it goes.

Similarly, I have always thought that I needed to go big or go home.

But I am learning that I am never going to please everyone, what I do does matter, and sometimes… I just need to KISS, or keep it simple silly!

So as I have been working on the map and compass activity I have planned, I have revised it about 16 times to make it much more simple, easier to follow and understand, especially to an 8yr old.

I am a green scout. I am not going to lie. I have all of these grandiose ideas. I can think big picture. It’s the little details that I sometimes either forget completely or stress too much on.

So today, I had a meeting with one of our group scoutmasters and my assistant leader (who will be doing exactly what I did last year).

And it was good to finally bounce ideas around. Get some stuff nailed down. Rework other ideas. Scrap some stuff all together.

This is a journey that has many peaks and valley’s and will be a wild ride. This year is going to be a year of great growth, a year of strengthening weaknesses, a year of making strengths second nature.

I may be a green scout. But I am committed to learning about the world around me so that I may teach my pack how to take care of their world in more ways than one.

Whether it is learning to take care of self, others, communities, friends, environment, or learning skills we hope to never use – like surviving in the wilderness or being prepared to administer first aid.

As Akela, I am committed to making sure my scouts are prepared. Prepared for the present. Prepared to become better in the future.

Akela’s Next Challenge: I will have a pack of TW that will have varied skills and abilities. It is my job, before Labor Day, to put together a calendar for the first 6 months that will reach all kids on all levels. And it needs to be done in a cohesive Ascend-Peak-Descent manner.

Challenge Accepted!