Howzit all!
So the 16th edition of the biannual SCaR (Scouts, Cubs & Rovers) newsletter has just come out and is downloadable at: http://www.scouting.org.za/capewest/heritage/scar/
Check out the Hawkeye 2009 article, which we won a while back. I’ve put the clipping up here but be sure to check out the rest of the newsletter for the latest news for Scouting in the Western Cape.
Hey all!!!
So here we are, just past the halfway mark at Scout Law #6: A Scout Is A Friend To Animals. Personally I think this is the most ‘unusual’ Law, as it is the only Scout Law which deviates from social behaviours such as honesty and obedience. It is also the only Law which links up to the outdoor theme of Scouting. Personally, I think that it was fantastic for B.P. to envision this Law over a hundred years ago, when concepts such as wildlife conservation and natural heritage were right at the bottom of the worlds barrel of priorities.
So what does being a ‘friend to animals’ entail? The obvious place to start is how we treat the creatures of the world. Scouts/Rovers are expected to not treat animals cruelly, not to kill unnecessarily, not to start veld fires, etc…. we’ve heard all these basics before. But isn’t this what every person on the planet should be trying? What sets the Scout ideals apart from standard conservation laws?
Remember the World Conservation Badge?
The answer is simple: Scouts are supposed to care. Its one thing to take an injured dog to the vet, but what happens then? Average Joe would probably just leave it, but would anyone care for that injured stray? And when it comes to wildlife, people are quick to run to the nearest nature reserve to take photos of some or other endangered species. But how many of those people are actually to blame for issues such as pollution and poor land usage which let to it being endangered in the first place? As a Scout we can’t just be another bystander, we need to be the people taking action!
B.P. had a religious outlook on this situation, and I know religion is often a sore point when it comes to Scouting. But regardless of whether you’re Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Evolutionist or Agnostic, I hope you can find some meaning in B.P.’s words:
You will recognise your comradeship with God’s other creatures placed, like yourself, in this world for a time, to enjoy their existance. To ill-treat an animal is therefore a dis-service to the Creator. “A Rover Scout has to be big-hearted.”
So what are you going to do? As a Scout, just taking care not to personally harm animals and wildlife is enough, but as a adult and a Rover Scout we need to do something proactive! What to do is up to you, but we all swore to follow these laws, we can’t just let this one slip!
Hi Everbody!
Sorry, I know it’s been awhile since my last ‘Scout Law’ post, but here I am, back with Scout Law number 5 “A Scout Is Courteous.” For those of your who aren’t fluent in english, or struggle with words longer than 2 syllables, courteous means: mannerly, gratious, civil or polite.
So what does this mean for us, the teens and adults of the 21st century? It’s not saying we must ‘yessir, nosir’ everybody we meet, doesn’t mean we can’t put our elbows on the table occassionally or that we can’t wear hats indoors (which I often do in anycase). What it is saying is that we must act with RESPECT to everyone, and even if there is someone we dislike, disagree with or even – dare I say – openly hate, we will suck it up and treat them with the mutual respect everybody on this planet deserves.
BP’s comment:
Like a knight of old, as a Rover Scout you are, or course, polite and considerate to women, old people and children. But more than this, you are polite also even to those in opposition to you. “Whoso is in the right need not lose his temper. Whoso is in the wrong cannot afford to.”
Remember there is no point losing our temper or giving into the modern pop culture of trying to all be rappers and rockstars. If you want to be ‘cool’ or ‘angry’ why not show that you are better than others by exerting some self-restraint and common decency. These 2 qualities seem to be few and far between and genuinely showing them is the best way to gain the respect of others, or to spit in the eye of an adversary who can’t.
So what it all comes down to is this: Respect others with the respect you would want for yourself if you were in their shoes. The rest comes naturally.
Hey all!!!
So this last weekend myself and Jon went through to staff on Cooks Course at Hawequas. Needless to say, as always something tends to go wrong the day before and we ended up taking the journey there and back in a car that was 3 sizes too small, had suspension as low and James’ standards and of course had a million and one plastic bits to fall off everytime the the road got bumpy! But we made it there and back, with most of my car still intact and with only some of our dignity lost along the way!
Not exactly a restaurant kitchen!
The weekend went pretty well. Only some of the 5 3-course meals we ended up inspecting were partially raw or burnt, and as an ex-scout we both already had stomaches of cast iron and bowels of pure titanium. So the indigestion was only slightly bad……. No, I’m being cynical! The standard of the food was really high and I’m totally suprised that the same scouts who manage to present raw dough at every Gordons Shield have managed to come up with some icredible meals! Well done guys! Check out out the photos here!
So looking back, we though it would be a cool idea to put up some of our favourite meals on the blog. We aren’t going to say whos we thought was the best, just the recipes! These recipes come straight out of the Cooks Course material, so if there is an uncited source, I apologise in advance!
Butternut Soup:
Fry the onions in butter until soft. Add butternut and stir to coat with butter and onions. Cover and cook for 5min. Stir in flour, curry powder and spices. Add stock and milk and bring to the boild whilst stirring continuously. Allow to simmer for 15-20min. Liquidise and adjust seasoning.
P.S. Don’t eat this if your Italian. (Long story)
More recipes will go up in the next few day! Cheers!
The Elands of Cooks 2009
At this point, you should hopefully all know the 4th Scout Law, “A Scout Is A Friend To All And A Brother To Every Other Scout.” But what does this really mean? Lets take a deeper look at this law.
Baden-Powell, in his book ‘The Presentation of A Rover Scout’ said the following about this law:
As a Rover Scout you recognize other fellows as being with yourself, sons of the same Father, and you disregard whatever may be their difference of opinion, or caste, creed, or country. You suppress your prejudices and find out their good points; any fool can criticize their bad ones. If you exercise this love for men/women of other countries you help to bring about international peace and goodwill, that is God’s Kingdom on earth. “All the world’s a Brotherhood.”
So in other words we are all created equal and must try to see the good points in others. Thats a lot easier said than done. The law doesn’t actually mean we need to befriend everyone, in fact we don’t even need to like them. What it all boils down to it mutual respect and understanding. We live in a world were racism, religious discrimination, homophobia, etc. all all commonplace in society. Especially here in South Africa it is hard for a day to go by without coming face-to-face with racism. But as a Scout/Rover we are expected to be above that.
We are not saying you have to like everybody, but once again have you really thought about your prejudices? Its so easy to fall into the rut of ‘all Muslims are terrorists’, ‘all Blacks are lazy’ or ‘all Australians are bad-sportsmen’ but why do we say these things? I know for a fact most of us just emulate the attitudes we get from our peers, parents and the media. We are big boys now. We need to come up with our own opinions and understandings.
Now regardless of wether you are religious or not, you need to understand that all people cannot control their circumstances. Its easy to turn our nose up at a beggar, saying “He’s just going to buy booze.” But do we really know that? No, we are just using it as a cop-out to avoid the situation. In other words, we dont know then so we can’t judge, give them the benefit of the doubt. If you are religious, be it Christian, Muslim, Hindu, etc. most religions believe in a plan of God, or a predetermined destiny, so judging people on their actions goes against religious beliefs.
So lets just be tolerant and treat the rest of humanity with the mutual respect we all need and deserve.
Howdi All!!!
Everyone knows the story of Nelson Mandela and his struggles against Apartheid here in South Africa. But what we may not all be aware of is that he dedicated a full 67 years of his life to helping his fellow man! Now it’s our turn.
“Mr Mandela spent 67 years making the world a better place. We’re asking you for 67 minutes.”
Some of you may have seen the about slogan before and if you haven’t, take some time to think about it. On the 18 July this year, and hopefully every year to follow, is international Mandela Day. On this day everybody in the world is urged to spend 67 minutes helping others. This can be anything from reading to the elderly, to a big service project. The perrogative is yours, but the important thin is that we all take action!
As Rovers remember that our motto is ‘SERVICE’ so lets make the best of this opportunity to put ourselves to good use. This goes to any Scouts and Cubs reading this as well, this is the kinda thing we are meant to be doing (don’t forget your 3rd scout law). Also remember that Nelson Mandela is the patron of the Scout Movement, so let try do him proud!
In any case here are some links you may find useful:
Hope to see you all participating!
B.P. made the following statement about the 3rd Scout Law:
As a Rover Scout (or Scout) your highest aim is service. You may be relied upon at all times to be ready to sacrifice time, trouble, or, if needed, life itself for others. “Sacrifice is the salt of Service.”
This doesn’t mean you are expected to throw yourself in front of moving busses or smother a fire with your body. What it means is that you must help ‘where you are able’. Thats an important point as most peoples ideas of service seem to huge, and as a result many of us feel that we don’t have the time or skills to accomplish anything worthwhile. This of course is not true.
There are 2 ways we can be ‘useful’. The first and most obvious kind is what we commonly know as service. This usually is thought of as only ‘community service’ but it doesn’t need to be on a scale that size. Maybe you offer to do the gardening for an elderly neighbour or even just pick up a few pieces of litter on the way home from the shop. It DOES NOT have to be a huge project.
As a Scout service is often regarded as the least fun of all the requirements. This is because we usually try to cram in a massive amount of work in only a few days. But as a Rover, and presumably a working man/woman or a student we can’t be expected to do 100 hours of alien vegetation clearing or beach combing. But how does helping for 1 hour on a Sunday morning at a soup kitchen affect our schedules? What about just picking up the litter you pass while on a hike? Thats not so bad is it? If we do only a little when we can, but keep on doing it, it works out to alot in the end. If we choose to make service part of our lifestyles we can actually make a very real difference.
The second part of being useful is what we know as ‘lending a hand’. These are things which arise where we can decide to either step in or do nothing. There are many examples of this. Maybe you pass someone broken down, does it really kill you to stop and ask if he needs help? Nobody expects you to pick up hitchhikers on a dark lonely road, or to give your pay check to a beggar. You don’t even need to be late for work. But once again, if faced with a situation where you can help, ask yourself ‘What do I have to lose?’
Just remember as a Scout/Rover/Scouter, you made an oath to do your duty to others, nobody is going to punish you for breaking this oath, but are you doing to do your bit and grow as a person? Or are you just doing to ignore everyone else because it’s “not tour problem.” It may be tough, but I think we all know what we need to do.
An example of how service pays off. Back in '05 for my Springbok service we did alien vegetation clearing in Blaauwberg. We worked in teams of 6, every team working 1 day for 6 days. Not alot of work, and didn't cost us a cent but according to the Municipality that had saved them R55000!
Greetings!
Check it out, this American kids got the 1st Bothasig colors!
Last week we got started on elaborating the 1st Scout Law: ‘A Scouts Honour is to be Trusted.’ This wee we’ll move on to Scout Law number 2, ‘A Scout is Loyal.’
When Robert Baden-Powell founded the Scout Movement, and its Rovering branch that law sounded a bit different, something like this: “A Scout is loyal to the Queen, his Country, his scouters, his parents, his employers, and to those under him.” Wow thats a mouthfull! But, obviously Scouting has since become international so the Queen bit doesn’t apply everywhere. Also, this law only mentions a few groups of people, but shouldn’t Scouts and Rovers be loyal to everyone who has placed some sort of trust in us? This is why the modern “A Scout is Loyal” is far more relevant.
B.P. Made the following comments about this law: “As a good citizen you are one of a team ‘playing the game’ honestly for the good of the whole. You can be relied upon by the Queen, as head of the Empire (this was meant for British Scouts, but this means loyalty to your government and nation), by the Scout Movements, by your friends and fellow-workers, by your employers, or employees, to do your best for them – even though they may not always quite come up to what you would like of them. Moreover, you are loyal also to yourself; you won’t lower your self-respect by playing the game meanly; nor will you let another man down – nor a woman, either.
That last bit about loyalty to yourself is often forgotten. In Rovering especially, a strong emphasis is place on personal developement and growth in the form of ‘Service to Oneself’. This doesn’t mean that you must be greedy and selfish, acting as the only person who matters. What it means is that you need to reflect upon your actions and decide if what you are doing is right for others, as well as yourself. It means you need to balance your selfishness and your selflessness.
On the other hand, this law basically builds upon the 1st Scout Law. You should have a personal sense of honour. What you need to ask youself is, do your actions uphold this honour in the eyes of others and your own? If you follow that honourable path, loyaly should come naturally.
Howdi All!
Many of you have probably heard that all Rovers do is get PISSED. Well, thats entirely true! Rovers exist entirely to get all their members PISSED. But, despite what you may think, getting PISSED is not a bad thing. Lets break down the being PISSED:
So as you can see, the principles of being PISSED are a good thing! So lets all stay PISSED!
-Adapted from Rovers Australia
Greetings All!!!
Every member of the Scout Association is bound by the same set of laws and promises, throughout the world, regardless of creed or culture. This is the one unifying factor of all Scouts across the globe. However, even though the laws themsleves do not change much, our understanding of the laws can differ vastly.
The same goes for Rovers and Scouts. As a Scout you are expected to have a basic understanding of the laws (you are only a child after all). However, as you progress into Rovering, and progress into adulthood, your understanding of these laws needs to mature as well. BP in his first guidelines of Rover Scouting, outlined this point and this work has come to be known as ‘The Presentation Of A Rover Scout.”
I’ll start off this week with the First Scout Law: ‘A Scouts Honour is to be Trusted.’ Many of us, both children and adults find this one of the most difficult laws to uphold. BP made the following comment about this law:
Your honour must be a very sacred thing to you, a thing that will rule your conduct as a man (or woman). It means that you can be trusted implicitly to do what you know is right or what you agree to undertake.
What Baden-Powell means here is that as a Scout/Rover, you are expected to have a personal sense of honour. To you that should mean that you never betray someone elses trust, that you don’t lie or cheat and that you do the ‘right’ thing. In fact this rule is so broad that it can encompass every aspect of your life. Another way to say this may be to ‘let your moral compass guide you.’
The phrase “Scout’s Honour” is so overused these days that we often forget what it means. We tend to think that it is limited to telling the truth, but we forget that honesty is only one aspect of our honour.
As a Rover, the metaphor or knighthood is often used. Back in the medieval times a knight automatically had a aura of nobility and chivalry attached to him. He could ride into any village (even where he was an absolute stranger) and be greeted and trusted, simply because people expected him to be honourable. Now if that same knight turned out to a thief and a criminal (insert crime here), not only would he personally be cast aside by the village, but no other knight would ever be fully trusted until he proved himself.
In the same way that one knight could destroy the good name of his entire order, a Scout/Rover can bring down the name of the whole Scout Movement. People all over the world have heard of Scouting and are willing to trust its members, its up to us not to betray that trust.
SCOUTS HONOUR!
