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Legend has it that Baden-Powell would always take a small amount of ashes from the campfire and spread these ashes into the next campfire
Ashes taken from a campfire are sprinkled into the flames of the next campfire. The next morning, when the ashes are cold, they are stirred, and each Guide or Scout takes some along to mix with her/his next campfire. If more than one Guide/Scout brings ashes to the same campfire, the lists are pooled, with the dates and places of all campfires recorded and passed on.
It is tradition that only those present at the ceremony may carry the ashes from that ceremony
Charge of the Ashes
May the spirits of past campfires be here with us tonight, carrying fellowship in these ashes from other campfires, thus uniting us with friends and comrades in other lands.
[Now, sprinkle saved ashes over fire]
May the joining of the dead fires with the leaping flames of our campfire tonight symbolize once more the unbroken chain that binds Guides and Scouts around the world. Fond greetings to Girl Guides and Girl Scouts of all nations, everywhere.
[Hint: doing the craft while telling the story is doubly effective]
Once upon a time, there was a wise old needle who decided to make a beige necklace. It enlisted the help of some string and set out on its journey. Beads rushed by the thousands to join. The needle welcomed all the beads and quickly threaded them on.
This process went on for quite some time. The necklace got longer and prettier. After some time, the needle turned around to look at its work. It was surprised to note that among all the beige beads it had put on, there were a few blue ones. When asked, the blue beads insisted that they had just as much right to be there as did the original beige beads. The needle was a little bit shocked, but upon reflection, it realized that the necklace would become even more beautiful if beads of all sizes and colours were added. No sooner had it admitted this than it noticed tiny brown beads lurking timidly on the sidelines. "Come on in," it called. "Being part of this necklace is one of the best decisions you'll ever make!"
Well, you guessed it--those little beads lined right up to be threaded on. And it didn't stop there. Beads of red and green and blue and pink and yellow flocked to the needle. Not all chose to stay, but many more joined than left. With each new bead the necklace gained strength. Pretty soon it was so-ooo long that it wrapped around the entire world. Eventually the needle was unable to help anymore, but it passed on the trade to some of the beads, and they gathered enough momentum to keep threading the beads by themselves.
One day, a small brown bead got a little nervous. "This necklace is awfully long," she said to her navy blue sister. "And the needle isn't here to run things anymore. What if the necklace falls apart?"
The older, more experience bead tried hard not to laugh. "Don't worry, little one," she said, "there's no fear of that happening. We have the strongest clasp possible!"
The brown bead breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm glad, but I don't remember us having a clasp" she said in confusion. "What does it look like?"
The confident blue bead explained. "You can't see the clasp. It's hidden in your heart, and in the heart of all the beads who have ever been part of this great necklace. You can find it if you try. What is it that really makes you part of the necklace? Say it with me."
The brown bead smiled slowly. "I think I understand" she announced. And together the beads spoke the words that had linked them ever since the wise needle had had its inspiration, and that would continue to link them forever:
"On my honor I will try, to serve God and my country, to help people at all times, and to live by the Girl Scout Law."
Reader 1
:
Nobody told me I would really feel part of something so big, so wonderful, that when we said the Promise together tonight that I would mean every word. Will I ever know all the words? You'll learn them, I was told.
Reader 2
:
Nobody told me that while I worried and fretted about about "doing the right thing at the right time", I would now be looked upon as "knowing all the answers" by the younger scouts. What if they won't listen to me? They'll learn from you, I was told.
Reader 3
:
Nobody told me I would really have to cook on an open fire. "I don't know how to scramble eggs or put up a tent." You'll learn, I was told. Nobody told me that I would really want to go camping again. You'll learn, I was told.
Reader 4
:
Nobody ever told me that I would become queasy or that my voice would crack when I led the Flag Ceremony. "But, I've never done a flag ceremony, I said. What if I forget the words? You'll learn, I was told.
Reader 5
:
Nobody told me that the Laws were made to help us become better people. How will I learn to get along with so many girls, we're all so different. You'll learn, I was told.
Leader
:
Nobody told me that getting to know these girls would be so much fun. Nobody told me, I learned.
In Unison
:
We are Girl Scouts. Four words, but, behind them, hundreds of feelings and thoughts. We are Girl Scouts because we love the out-of-doors, singing, reading, learning how to make things, and because we enjoy sharing with our friends in Girl Scouting. Nobody told us that we would make so many friends! Nobody told us. We learned.
This candle represents the spirit of Girl Scouting. It burns throughout our meeting to represent the friendship and fun we enjoy together.
Look to the flame and see its challenge to you:
Bless you for being just who you are --- Girls are great!
This is story of how "Taps," first came to be played at military funerals
The time was the United States' Civil War. Confederate Army Colonel, Dan Butterfield, a courageous and able soldier, was also a man of music. To honor his fallen comrades, he composed on July 2, 1862, a simple and heartrending melody. Later that summer, Union Army captain, Robert Ellicombe, was with his men near Harrison's Landing in Virginia. On the other side of this narrow strip of land was a contingent of the Confederate Army.
During the night, Capt. Ellicombe heard the moan of a soldier who lay mortally wounded on the field. The captain lit a lantern, suddenly caught his breath, and went numb with shock. In the dim light of the lantern he saw the face of the soldier---it was his own son!
The following morning, the heartbroken father asked permission of his superiors to give his son a full military burial, despite the young man's enemy status. There was reluctance to grant any such request. Certainly a burial with full honors was not permissible because the soldier was a Confederate. But some sort of funeral was acknowledged as appropriate.
The Captain asked if he could have a group of army band members play a dirge for his son at the funeral. This request was denied; but, out of respect for the captain, his superiors agreed to let one musician play. The Captain chose the bugler. He gave the bugler a note that had been taken from the pocket of the dead youth's uniform, on which a series of musical notes were written. The bugler agreed to play them. That music was Colonel Butterfield's melody; it henceforth became the haunting bugle tune we now know as "Taps."
So now you know that "Taps" originated as a beautiful closing, given to all the world through compromise.
From information submitted by Edward C. Iberger of Riverhead, NY, and Pat Skelly <ScoutLdr@AOL.com> Plymouth Bay GSC, Massachusetts
[A ceremony to challenge adults to serve youth]
Setting: Room lights dimmed. Spot light on a closed door. Narrator reads off stage.
Narrator: "This door can let people in . . . or it can keep people out.
"This door could lie open to more girls in Girl Scouting . . . or it could be slammed in their faces . . . . This door.
" This door could carry a welcome sign . . . or 'Keep Out' . . . 'Full House' . . . . This door.
" It can open into the warm light of training sessions . . . or it can be kept locked and dark.
" This door . . . for a girl . . . could open to a great, wide, wonderful world . . . or it could open to a jail, or a homeless shelter . . . . This door.
" This door opens to only one of every three; two girls are turned away from the door that opens to adventure . . . to wholesome experiences . . . to an understanding of themselves . . . to an appreciation of, and love for, our Earth.
" Doors must be opened for girls. Girls will seldom go up and knock on a door.
" What girls do . . . and what they think . . . should not be left to chance.
" Open that door for just one more. Open that door for just one more."
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