So, here we are.....

So here we are.. blogging again, mind firmly on all matters Scouting.. which shouldn't be too hard.... !!! Tonight being Thursday ( as the day following Wednesday usually is..) Beavers was the order of the evening.. one hour of tying knots, and introducing the joy of rope.. which was fun... now, I'm led to understand that the lesser spotted GSL is a rare beast at section meetings... thankfully so, in the eyes of some section leaders... but I do see my job as supporting the leaders in my group, in whatever way possible.. plus I enjoy messing about with rope... but more on that another time... but it did start me wondering why GSLs are seen so rarely... I remember in my days as a Scout, all those many many years ago, our GSL, Trev, better known as Skip, was at nearly all the section meetings.. admittedly, we had no Beavers back then, and Explorers and Network were sort of combined in that mythical body, The Ventures, but upon becoming a Leader after a break from Scouting of ten years(I know, I know.. but getting my priorities wrong is a hobby of mine.. how do you think I ended iup as a GSL??) I was surprised that our GSL was such a rare sight that most of the Scouts didn't know who he was, or what he did... so upon finally becoming GSL at our hut, I made a concious decision that all the Leaders, Scouts and Cubs would know who I was... maybe they wouldn't have a clue what I do, but fairs fair.. I have no idea either... but they would all be able to recognise me.. so why do I keep hearing of GSLs who seem to have lots of contact with commitees, but little with our most important members.... so, with too much time on my hands, I came up with the following... it seems to me that some of us distance ourselves out of a fear of being seen as interfering.. and informal chats with some leaders (especially in the Scout section!) lends credence to this... SLs seem to get a bit nervous with the GSL breathing down their necks, and this gets passed on... of course, some GSLs come into Scouting from outside, with no experience whatever of the youth sections... which must be very daunting... and some of course have busy lives, and maybe can't find the time.... all very valid..... but its my experience that GSLs do their job a lot better with contact with the young people.. it keeps one in touch with what scouting is all about.. now, I'm not suggesting for one minute that we should all be like my old Skip, going to every section metting.. although to be honest i seem to be at most of them.... but if we just try to visit each section once a month, not to check up on our leaders, but to join in, and help them, we'd probably learn an awful lot... and the leaders would be glad to see us... possibly!! But I'm sure a lot of you already know this.. so I'll not dwell on it.. anyway, that's the first post out of the way, except for this ... three Scout Leaders walked into a bar.. you'd have thought one of them would have seen it... so until next time, enjoy your Scouting, and remember... be prepared..... you'll need to be!!!