My "Groundhog Day" way of thinking. - A big fault.

[Eamonn]

While no member of my family seems to have any real musical talent. Looking back to when I as a Lad, music was always around me.

Dad had his "Irish Records".

My brother who is four years older than me had the Rolling Stones, the Beatles.

I had the 1970's Rod Stewart, T-Rex, Queen.

Time has passed.

I found myself stuck in a time warp.

The radio stations I set my car stereo at were all Oldies stations.

I have a collection of Irish music, mainly recordings by the Wolftones, The Dubliners, The Clancy Brothers.

I stopped buying any more CD's as it seemed the same songs were repeated so often and it became a waste of money.

Thanks to River Dance, Celtic Woman and more intrest in Irish music I started looking to see what was out there.

I did buy a few CD's but again it seemed they were just the same old same old songs only sung by people who were not drawing their retirement pay.

Of course if it seemed that the group or the person singing wasn't Irish - I wanted no part of it.

I was in a store buying a book that I wanted to give a Scout who graduates this year and I just looked in at the music department. I picked up two CD's of Celtic music. One by Big Sea and one by the Wicked Tinkers.

I left them in the car and wen I did open them (Why is opening a CD such hard work?) I didn't read the covers just played them. Both were really outstanding.

A few days later I took them in the house to download them onto my computer and I found out that Big Sea is from Canada (Newfoundland) and the Wicked Tinkers are from Scotland!!

This got me thinking about the way I have been thinking.

I do at times tend to box myself in and seem not to be good at accepting change or new ideas or things.

While of course the old stuff from the Dubliners and the Wolftones will always be great, there is room for the new.

I went to Amazon and while looking at Irish music seen that the Dubliners have a CD that celebrates 40 years of the Dubliners!!

If it wasn't for new groups coming along and doing this sort of music in time the music would die.

I worry that at times we Scouter's seem unwilling to accept things that have changed or are changing.

I'm not saying that all the good stuff BP and Green Bar Bill needs to go out with the dishwater.

But some of the Scouts I has in the Troop when I was a new SM close to becoming Grandparents!!

Kids and their parents see things differently than maybe I do.

While it's not a bad thing to look back and see what was said and done 100 years ago. It is however worth remembering it was said and done 100 years ago!! Things have changed a lot in that time, values have undergone a rethink!!

We do need to be aware of these changes and be willing to look at these and maybe accept them.

Eamonn

[scouter.claude]

I agree, it seems as if the BSA is stuck in the 50's on some issues. I often wonder if it has to do with who the majority of Charter Organizations are.

[Tokala]

Eamonn..as for the music. Go to youtube and listen to some Flogging Molly. Trust me. :-)

 

As for history and change, I try to use the great experiences and adults that I enjoyed as a Scout in the 70's to illustrate how the values are still the same, even if the uniforms and advancement programs have changed. I've put stuff from the 70's & 80's into my troop program and NYLT and the Scouts thought it was fun and interesting. I didn't necessarily tell them that it was "old school", but presented it as something that might be challenging and fun.

[Apache Bob]

Just today at lunch I was listening to the news and they came on with the 5 best beaches of the year. To my suprise number one was Caladesi (spelling) just north of Clearwater Beach Fla.

In the mid 50's it was called Hog Island. An Explorer friend and I spend a week doing survival camping on that island.

I think that a mixture of the old and new is always good. If we remember the underlining principle of the Scouting program.

 

[skeptic]

Yes, we should adapt and adopt, but only where it does not dilute or damage the basic premise of the program. Far too many people would rather we simply throw it all out.

Thus, the old adage: "Don't throw out the baby with the bath water"