BOY TRAPPED

Where the inside of my mind leaks onto the screen.

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Blue and Gold

PART A (2:53 pm on February 27th, about four hours before the Blue and Gold Banquet)

We have two new important colors around here now that Adam has turned eight: Blue and Gold.

The only problem is that I'm a girl who grew up with sisters, and I'm pretty sure I could scratch everything I know about the combination on the back side of a napkin.


I guess I could add that many of the awesome people I've known throughout my life have been Eagle Scouts, and that I wouldn't at all mind being the mother of one (or three).  

But then I'd have to add that the whole "Eagle Scout" thing stresses me out a bit.  Let's face it.  Behind every just about every Eagle is a mother who helped said Eagle follow through on all the great things he meant to do.  Am I ready to be that mom?  Am I ready to try to find the balance between support, nagging, and pushing?

At the back of my mind, I've always had this great plan:

STEP 1: Sit down with the scout and whatever materials it is that goes along with scouting.
STEP 2: Allow the scout to set goals.
STEP 3: Ask the scout how much support he would like from mom.  

  • Do you want to sit down with me each Sunday and look over your scout stuff?
  • Do you want to handle your own stuff, and you'll ask me when you need help?
  • Do you want me to do everything I can to force help you achieve your goals?
STEP 4: Discuss special privileges that someone who has shown the responsibility of achieving a big goal might earn.
  • Later curfews (bedtimes)
  • Extra use of electronics (cell phone, etc when the scout is a teenager)
  • Use of adult property (like a car, etc when the scout is 16)
STEP 5: Praise accomplishments like crazy.
STEP 6: Repeat steps 1-5 at each advancement.

STEP 7: Sit back and watch my scouts independently and happily earn their badges and advancements.

Okay, go ahead and roll your eyes / gag / call me crazy.  I know it's wishful thinking.

And so here I sit, wondering exactly what scouts is going to actually  look like in this family and still mostly just wondering about what on earth even happens at a Blue and Gold Banquet.

PART B (1:55 pm on February 28th, one day after the Blue and Gold Banquet)

Well, I definitely learned some stuff last night. 
  1. If you think theater people are weird, you should attend Cub Scouts.  I think I could have survived another 31 years without knowing how to do a watermelon clap.
  2. The Cub Scout flag ceremony was nearly enough to bring me to tears.  Respectful young men in uniform honoring their country and their flag.  Okay, I will endure strange clapping rituals for that.
  3. If you want tips on uniforms and badges, sit with the families that have multiple boys.  I think I'll follow the advice of one mom who suggested a shirt that should fit for the next two years, which can then be passed down to Al when Adam needs a bigger one.  What about the patches?  It was suggested that little brother might enjoy having older brother's patches already sewn on because - let's face it - you're never going to get around to sewing them on the 2nd shirt.  I was also informed that they sell plastic inserts for the pockets that you can put the patches/badges on, but since the other dads agreed that they "look dumb," I think I will avoid that option.
  4. Apparently it's not that hard to succeed in Cub Scouts.  One dad assured me that most of the stuff if stuff people do anyway; it's just a matter of marking it in the book.  And apparently after a few times of attending scouts, Adam had already earned a belt thingy.  (I still have plenty of work to do on my scout lingo.)
  5. I'm pretty sure they call it a "pack" because the boys seem to clump together and move from place to place in a semi-solid blob.  And since I think that is a pretty natural male mentality, I am grateful to have a blob with solid values to send my sons to hang out in.
  6. I'm still overwhelmed.  And I'm still pretty clueless.  But I can't wait to see what Adam - and six of his best buddies - are about to accomplish.
Adam with his first "belt thingy"... many more to come!

3 comments:

Kris said...

Cub scouts is awesome. I was a cub scout master a few years ago and was completely clueless about everything. It was so neat to teach the Bears and learn more about the scouting world. I'm learning even more now that Christopher is the Assistant Scout master in our current ward. I'm looking forward to when Ethan becomes of age.

Sarah said...

By the time Dylan and Ty are getting into this, you'll know all the ins and outs to teach me! Until then, I remain "a girl who grew up with sisters" and knows nothing about scouting (EXCEPT I did go to one blue & gold night while in the primary presidency and experienced several CRAZY cheers, too!! wow.).

Sarah said...

By the time Dylan and Ty are getting into this, you'll know all the ins and outs to teach me! Until then, I remain "a girl who grew up with sisters" and knows nothing about scouting (EXCEPT I did go to one blue & gold night while in the primary presidency and experienced several CRAZY cheers, too!! wow.).