As we repeat the Scout Oath each week at our meetings and try every day to live the values and promises it contains, sometimes it is worth putting it in perspective and coming to a better understanding of what we promise when we say those words that begin with ON MY HONOR.
The last part of the Scout Oath, the part in which we make three promises to ourselves. Those final promises that shape character and set direction in our lives. That last part of the Oath that keeps us Prepared... for anything.
A friend of mine sent me this short story. I do not know who the original author is, but it is worth the read, I modified it at the end to maintain relevance in a Scouting setting.
Years ago, a farmer owned land along the Atlantic seacoast. He constantly advertised for hired hands. Most people were reluctant to work on farms along the Atlantic. They dreaded the awful storms that raged across the sea, wreaking havoc on the buildings and crops. As the farmer interviewed applicants for the job, he received a steady stream of refusals.
Finally, a short, thin man, well past middle age, approached the farmer. “Are you a good farm hand?” the farmer asked him. “Well, I can sleep when the wind blows,” answered the little man.
Although puzzled by this answer, the farmer, desperate for help, hired him. The little man worked well around the farm, busy from dawn to dusk, and the farmer felt satisfied with the man’s work. Then one night the wind howled loudly in from offshore.
Jumping out of bed, the farmer grabbed a lantern and rushed next door to the hired hand’s sleeping quarters. He shook the little man and yelled, “Get Up! A storm is coming! Tie things down before they blow away!”
The little man rolled over in bed and said firmly, “No sir, I told you, I can sleep when the wind blows.”
Enraged by the response, the farmer was tempted to fire him on the spot. Instead, he hurried outside to prepare for the storm. To his amazement, he discovered that all of the haystacks had been covered with tarpaulins. The cows were in the barn, the chickens were in the coops, and the doors were barred. The shutters were tightly secured.
Everything was tied down.
Nothing could blow away. The farmer then understood what his hired hand meant,
so he returned to his bed to also sleep while the wind blew.
MORAL OF THIS STORY
When you’re prepared, spiritually, mentally, and physically, you have nothing to fear. Can you sleep when the wind blows through your life?The hired hand in the story was able to sleep because he had secured the farm against the storm. We secure ourselves against the storms of life by grounding ourselves in the in the Scout Oath and Law. The Scout Oath and Law grounds us against every storm. It ensures that we are Trustworthy and Loyal, like the farmer in the story. Brave, so we can sleep while the winds blow, standing up to that which challenges us. And Reverent. We know that when we ground our selves in a belief in God, or a higher power that we know and love, that we will ultimately be alright. We know that we have a protector in our Savior and that by maintaining our faith in him, he will take care of us. I love in the story that it speaks to BEING PREPARED. Baden Powell challenged us to BE PREPARED for anything. It is our motto. We prepare for the storms in our life by living the Oath and Law.
What a great story that sums up our promise, OUR HONOR.
Borrowed from The Scoutmaster Minute by Jerry S.
Yours in Scouting Service
Mark W
Junior Assistant Scoutmaster
Troop 1616
