S.P. & Law – A scout makes good use of his time and is careful of possessions and property
There is a saying “The Devil makes work for idle hands” – that is to say, if you’ve nothing to do, you’ll find something, but it probably won’t be very helpful. So, a Scout is always doing good? Well, not exactly.
It would be wrong to read this as a Scout is always helping other people. What it says is that when a Scout finishes doing a job they think “what should I be doing now – and if nothing what could I do now” and do that – which might be reading, doing homework, playing a game.
What it is saying is that if I asked you to help me put the tent up you would do so – not just wander off and play on the climbing frame. If you got stuck on a tricky bit, you’d try and work it out or ask a Leader – not just wander off and leave it until someone noted it was still laying on the ground (or worse in a bramble bush).
This leads to the next part of this law – is careful of possessions and property. It means that just because a tent pole is long with a pointy bit at the end it doesn’t double up as a Javelin. It means that if you were playing with the Troop Football and you’d finished playing you would return the ball to where you got it from – not leave it in the middle of the field.
Of course this applies not just to other people’s stuff but yours as well – it is ALL possessions and property.
But it should also be noted that whilst you are being careful of possessions, you should not be afraid to use something for the purpose it was designed for. It’s no use having a football if you never kick it for example, or a full-suspension mountain bike if you’re only ever going to cycle on the roads (or not cycle at all).
