Boy Scout Troop 325
Scoutmaster Minute
Adapted from "An Afternoon in the Park"
by: Julie A. Manhan
December 13, 2005
Larry Polyak, Scoutmaster

There once was a little boy who wanted to meet God. He knew it was a long trip to where God lived, so he packed his backpack with Twinkies and a six-pack of root beer and he started his journey.

When he had gone about three blocks, he met an old woman. She was sitting in the park just staring at some pigeons. The boy sat down next to her and opened his backpack. He was about to take a drink from his root beer when he noticed that the old lady looked hungry, so he offered her a Twinkie. She gratefully accepted it and smiled at him. Her smile was so pretty that the boy wanted to see it again, so he offered her a root beer. Once again she smiled at him. The boy was delighted!

They sat there all afternoon eating and smiling, but neither of them said a word.

As it began to grow dark, the boy realized how tired he was and he got up to leave. He turned around, ran back to the old woman and gave her a hug. She gave him her biggest smile ever.

When the boy opened the door to his own house a short time later, his mother was surprised by the look of joy on his face.

She asked him, "What did you do today that made you so happy?"

He replied, "I had lunch with God. You know what? She's got the most beautiful smile I've ever seen!"

Meanwhile, the old woman returned to her own home.

Her son was stunned by the look of peace on her face and he asked, "Mom, what did you do today that made you so happy?"

She replied, "I ate Twinkies in the park with God. You know, he's much younger than I expected."

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A scout is reverent, but scouting promotes no particular faith or religion. Being "reverent" and belief in God, can be vastly different from one person to another. As we approach this holiday and Christmas season, I encourage you to think about what God means to you. Would you recognize him (or her) on a park bench next to you?

Thanks for listening.