Eagles Take Flight: Proud Mama
Please allow me an article to brag about my kids... I will try to tie it all in with Qigong and a harmonious energetic expression!
My heart overflows with pride to share that my son James (18) and daughter Allison (16) just achieved the rank of Eagle Scout. They were engaged, committed, and focused over the last 5-7 years to attain this distinction.
At the end of June, they were honored with 8 other scouts from our troop. Together, they were called the Tenacious Ten, because tenacity is exactly what you need in order to complete the rigorous requirements to achieve Eagle Scout.
The Daily Camera newspaper interviewed the teens in this pdf article!
(skip to page 2)
The scouts share their favorite memories, adventures, and leadership roles. Allison's interview was front and center, as she was the 1st female Eagle Scout in our troop. Being a trailblazer had its share of challenges and rewards. Our family is grateful that we could enjoy Scouts as a family, regardless of gender.
I recognize the complicated feelings many people have about Boy Scouts (now Scouting America) after the scandals of the last half-century. We are fortunate to have a rewarding and enriching experience, supporting the many virtues we cultivate in Qigong: Harmony with nature, Empowerment, Compassion, and Engagement.
I aim to share a glimpse of their day-to-day experiences to become an Eagle Scout.
Harmony with Nature: The scouts spent a weekend every month for years, camping in the great outdoors. They learned to respect the power of nature including extreme heat, intense cold, strong winds, pouring rain and deep snow. They came to appreciate the gentle gift of the perfect breeze, flowing streams, and the shade of a tree. The scouts purified water to nourish their bodies and built cooking fires from the abundant grasses and twigs. They respectfully witnessed wild animals and gorgeous sunrises. Scouting helped my kids to learn how to harmonize their own bodies with the ebb and flow of nature.
Empowerment: Scouts taught my kids to trust themselves and their own capabilities far sooner than I would have as a parent. Starting at age 11, they were trusted with the responsibility of properly handling an axe, bow and arrow, and pocketknife. They shopped for food and cooked it for each other over a fire. The scouts packed themselves for outings, setup and tore-down tents, and managed their belongings. They were expected to wake themselves during camping trips at 6am to start the day. There were hiccups and memorable mistakes along the way, and through it all, my kids were empowered to believe in their own abilities and take action for the group.
Compassion: Scouts are expected to work together to cook, setup, plan, hike, clean, hang bear bags, and anything else required on the trail. There were various levels of executive functioning, self-awareness, and interpersonal skills among each group. They learned to support each other through strengths and weaknesses, accept idiosyncrasies, apologize for their own behavior, lead the group, and advocate for themselves and each other. When one scout forgot to bring the communal dinner, didn't have tent stakes, or found their sleeping bag wet, the rest of the patrol would brainstorm to find a solution and support each other. They learned so much about how to get along with others and work as a team.
Engagement: Scouts taught my kids to be fully present: present with fire, present with knife handling, present with each other. They learned to look adults in the eyes and express themselves in conversation, advocate for themselves, write emails to adults with clarity in their words, and act as a leader around other scouts.
Scouting has been an amazing experience for our family. I'm proud of James and Allison for developing the self-awareness that we aim for in Qigong: trusting their intuition, being clear with their voices, aligning with their hearts, and manifesting their goals. I am grateful to Troop 78 and proud of the confident and capable young adults they have become.
Thank you for joining me in celebrating this accomplishment!
