Carving A Name

NOTE: This is a Scoutmaster Minute I delivered at an Eagle court of honor this evening.

I WROTE my name upon the sand,

And trusted it would stand for aye;

But, soon, alas! the refluent sea

Had washed my feeble lines away.

I carved my name upon the wood,

And, after years, returned again;

I missed the shadow of the tree

That stretched of old upon the plain.

To solid marble next, my name

I gave as a perpetual trust;

An earthquake rent it to its base,

And now it lies, o'erlaid with dust.

All these have failed. In wiser mood

I turn and ask myself, "What then?"

If I would have my name endure,

I'll write it on the hearts of men,

In characters of living light,

Of kindly deeds and actions wrought.

And these, beyond the touch of time,

Shall live immortal as my thought.

-- Horatio Alger

As we participate in the Scouting program – as parents, as Scouts, as leaders – we work in a way to carve our names. Not in any way to brag, but to ensure that we influence those around us for good. As Josh moves forward in his Scouting activity, he will have many opportunities to carve his name. He’ll work with his fellow Scouts in Troop 125. He’ll hopefully have the chance to work with scouts from throughout the council as he takes on duties in Cedar Badge and continues with the Order of the Arrow. We can all encourage Scouts to move forward, to advance, to have fun, to build memories and to build foundations on which they’ll teach their own Scouts, their own children, the things they have learned. I encourage us all to write our names in the hearts of those we work with, as Alger writes, “in characters of living light, of kindly deeds and actions wrought.”