From: CoopWright@aol.com
Date: Thu Jan 30 2003 - 12:32:12 CST
Good info from Jason. I have included the section of the Philmont Advisor's
Guide that deals with trail meditations. I hope it is of some help to you.
If you would like to see the see of the Guide, please contact me directly.
Trail Meditations
It always has been the responsibility of Boy Scouting's adult leadership
to provide an opportunity for their Crewmembers to observe the twelfth point
of the Scout Law, "A Scout is Reverent". This is especially true at Philmont
where the use of daily meditations has been found to be an excellent means to
provide a time of thoughtful reflection for individual crewmembers. Daily
meditations have also helped crewmembers bond themselves into a harmonious
unit that can overcome the challenges of fatigue, bad weather or rough
terrain.
During the advisor's meeting conducted the first night at base camp, each
member of the crew will receive Eagles Soaring High, Trail Worship for
Christians, Muslims and Jews. This is an excellent resource that can be used
by the crew to conduct short meditations while on the trail. The booklet has
been specifically written to mirror the needs of crewmembers. For example
the meditation for Day 4 on the trail speaks of forgiveness. By this time,
everyone has somebody they need to ask forgiveness from! As you hike along
the trail in the first part of the morning, stop at an overlook and take a
couple of minutes to do a meditation. You will find that the natural beauty
of Philmont provides the ideal outdoor place of worship.
Another way that a crew can display reverence and build unity as a group
is through the use of grace at meals. No matter how difficult the day or how
hungry the crewmember, time should be taken to give thanks for the food and
those who prepared it. Saying grace together can become almost magical after
a while. Several suggested graces for meals in addition to the Philmont
grace are contained in Eagles Soaring High.
A Philmont trek is really a workshop in group behavior and dynamics. If
the weather has been bad or if the terrain has been difficult, a crew can
come apart at the seams. The cooperation and enthusiasm that was present on
the first day of the trek can disappear only to be replaced with frustration
or even anger. Adults can be especially vulnerable to this frustration. It
is up to the advisor to help the crew leader keep the crew working together
as a group, so that the Philmont experience will be one in which the
crewmembers will have grown, both physically and emotionally. A
non-threatening technique that is now being taught by Philmont Rangers as a
means to share feelings and resolve conflicts is "Thorns, Roses and Buds" or
simply "Thorns and Roses". Each day, no matter how tired you are and no
matter how much a crewmember wants to go to bed, the crew should pause and
allow each member to reflect on his feelings. "Thorns and Roses" can be done
immediately following a daily meditation or perhaps at the end of the day.
The crew sits in a circle and each member has an opportunity to say the worst
(thorns) thing that has happened to him that day, the best (roses) thing, and
voice future expectations (buds). There are only three ground rules.
· First, if a crewmember does not want to speak, he does not have to.
· Second, only one person speaks at a time and no one can question what is
being said.
· Third, what is said in the circle, is left at the circle and not
discussed again.
"Thorns and Roses" works. It allows the crew to discipline themselves,
without adult intervention. In fact, during Coop's 1992 Philmont trek,
several crewmembers asked for a "Thorns and Roses" session because there were
problems in the crew that needed to be solved. Start using these techniques
from your very first training hike.
Philmont chaplains will tell you that those crews who conducted daily
devotions, said grace before meals, and used "Thorns and Roses" exhibited
stronger group dynamics and did not fall apart when conditions got tough.
Philmont chaplains are available should your crew experience some form of
human dynamics problem in the backcountry. Usually by that time however, the
crew as a team is broken and cannot be fixed. It is your job as the advisor
to be sensitive to what is going on with each person within your crew
including adults and use the techniques like "Thorns and Roses" to allow each
person to express their feelings."
Cooper Wright
Associate Advisor, Crew 1519
Co-author of the Philmont Advisor's Guide
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As you gather around this virtual campfire with fellow
Scouts and Scouters, do your best to be trustworthy,
loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient,
cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent.
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