As mentioned previously, our oldest son is in his first year of Lions Cubs, a relatively new program for kindergarten age boys that allows them to participate in Cub Scouts. This Saturday, his den will be camping out for the night at a park not far removed from the metropolitan area. And since Lions Cubs are always accompanied by an “adult partner,” I will be joining him in the great out of doors. I’ve done a fair amount of camping in my day so one night away from the comforts of home didn’t seem to be an especially daunting prospect.
Scouts follow the motto “be prepared” and to help us do just that they sent a list of things to bring for camping and rules to follow. As my scanned the page nothing really stood out until I came to the words “No Alcohol Allowed.” No alcohol allowed? While I hadn’t been planning to get knee-walking drunk or anything, I had thought that having a couple of beers in our tent before retiring for the night would be a good way to cap the day. Not in front of the other impressionable kids of course. But let’s be real. It would hardly come as a shock to our son if he were to see his dad quaff a beer in the privacy of our tent.
But it appears that this camping expedition will be a dry one. Not in terms of weather, since rain is expected for most of the day tomorrow. But it will be devoid of any real sort of liquid restorative. I actually can’t remember the last time I went camping without having the benefit of adult beverages for sustenance. It probably would have to have been all the way back when…I was in Boy Scouts. Funny how things have a way of coming full circle. Strange, not ha ha.
While I can understand why the Scouts do not allow alcohol at their activities, I do think it tends to contradict the “be prepared” motto a bit. The medicinal properties of alcohol are well established and I would hate to be caught unprepared in the event of a bear attack, rattlesnake bite, or need to remove a bullet or pull out an arrow from a wounded camper. Oh well, it’s only one night and I suppose we will survive it. Somehow.
