Patrick Keys (9th/10th Dublin Aughrim Street) kindly sent us a chapter taken from his memoir, which he has written for his grandchildren.
Thank you for sharing your lovely words capturing over 70 years of Scouting. Take a read below.
Not long after settling down in Dublin, I joined the local scout troop in Aughrim Street parish – the “9th Dublin”. I'd seen pictures in my grandmother's house of my uncle James in his smart scout uniform and this first attracted me to the notion of signing up for the boy scouts. Looking back now, I can clearly see that my participation in the scout movement was incredibly formative and beneficial as I grew up. The scouting experience offered me invaluable opportunities for personal growth and development which were unique and not available or hard to find elsewhere. The range of structured activities helped me and countless other young people to explore new interests and discover new skills, all in an exciting and fun environment.
Scouting was unique, maybe similar to team sports in many ways but much broader in that it combined hands-on shared learning with a terrific sense of camaraderie which helped forge good interpersonal skills, which are so crucial in the formation of well-rounded adults in later life. The nurturing of both technical and soft people skills were incredibly useful in the development of our personalities, which at the time seemed to happen naturally – almost without us realising that we were gaining proficiency. Reflecting now on my scouting days, I recall the gradual development of a broad range of skills and experiences; through the scout merit badge programme for example, where we got an attractive extra emblem to flash on our uniform sleeve to show that we had reached the required level of expertise in a particular sphere. Learning skills like map reading, first-aid, public speaking, swimming, lifesaving and cooking served as a great motivator for us young scouts, encouraging us to excel and broaden our competence in so many ways. The merit badges represented tangible achievements, serving as markers of progress and reminders of skills learned and challenges overcome.
In particular, the emphasis placed on thrusting leadership roles onto us young people were incredibly formative in their own right. Leadership, team-building and consensus building, guiding others, making decisions, taking responsibility, giving orders, inspiring and motivating your team are universally beneficial skills learned through scouting. In addition, we learned through activities focussed on the environment and nature – a love of and sensitivity for its preservation – long before the “green agenda” was heard of.
I obviously recall my days in scouting, spanning all of seven years, with great affection. The memories stirred always get me singing quietly to myself one of our favourite camp-fire songs, which goes to the air of Santa Lucia and the last verse of which proclaims,
Camp-fires are burning low
No longer leaping
Scouts sing their evening songs
Shadows come creeping
Sun sinks below the west
Goodnight and may you rest
Blankets warm and by soft sounds caressed
Scouts all are sleeping.
