At last, after three years of Cub Scouts and one year in the
Guide Patrol/Blazers I was finally a real Boy Scout. But, as I said, just
before I turned 12, Dad was released as Scout Master and made Elder’s Quorum
President. The new Scout Master was Steve Barnes.
Steve was a towering figure in the ward. Well, he was about
seven feet tall and wore size 18 shoes. So, he was physically towering – his size
made quite the impression on us. He was a great man and we enjoyed him as Scout
Master and he enjoyed being with us. But he didn’t have the spark that made
scouting fun. I had seen how Dad had made scouting a joy. So I had a benchmark
and the troop I was part of fell way short of my expectations.
Of course, being the overzealous person that I am, during my
first year of scouting I was totally into it. By the time I was 13 I had all
but two or three merit badges for Eagle. I was on a pace to meet or exceed Matt’s
accomplishment of being Eagle before I was 14. But then I stopped.
