Thoughts from Dr. Joe: Scouts meet the challenge
I was anxious to meet the boys of Troop 507. They had just arrived at Union Station and after a 21-hour train ride from New Mexico, they had a tale or two to tell.
Nine Scouts from Saint Bede’s troop had just completed a 104-mile trek at the Philmont Scout Ranch, a large, rugged preserve nestled in the Sangre de Cristo mountains in northern New Mexico.
We spoke for more than an hour and I saw a phenomenon in their eyes. A transformation! I assume they were not quite the same people. Perhaps unbeknownst to them, they had added another dimension to their lives. Naturalist John Muir explained that one who experiences the sublime of wilderness is rich forever. These boys would hold onto this experience for a lifetime.
They carried 45-pound packs up five mountain peaks — all 11,000 footers: Baldy Mountain, Comanche Peak, Mount Phillips, Big Red and the Tooth of Time.
“How did you feel when you summited?” I asked.
“You get a new perspective when you’re on top the mountain. If I can do this what can’t I do?” Ethan Harp replied. He understood the climber’s philosophy, it’s the sides of the mountain that sustain life, not the top.
Luke Bender, the crew leader, was elected for the job by his peers.
“Why do you think you were elected?” I asked him.
“The Scouts trusted me,” he replied. Bender spoke of the nature of the team. Collectively, the boys understood that the team is sacrosanct. From food preparation to maintaining each others’ spirits throughout their arduous adventure, they forged bonds.
In the Marine Corps, I learned that the greater the loyalty of individuals toward the group, the greater is the motivation among the members to achieve the goals of the group. Hence the prognosis that Troop 507 would complete their adventure on a high note was assured.
I liked the boys’ intuitiveness in recognizing the importance of having a spiritual guide. Henry Vaughn served as chaplain. Vaughn said, “We became close because we appreciated each others’ worth and contribution.”
William Henderson, the “pledge guia” was responsible for the morale and cohesiveness of the team.
Henderson realized the importance of tenacity and confidence in surmounting the overbearing peak, the Tooth of Time. I believe he understood the nature of wilderness travel: You can either do it or you can’t do it.
Wilderness offers a respite from the maddening inertia of civilization. A trek in the wild challenges our complacent convictions. Thoreau went to Walden Pond because he wished to live deliberately and to front only the essentials of life. He wanted to learn what a world not made by humans had to teach. The boys of Troop 507 garnered a firsthand understanding that there are components of life that do not respond to the flick of a switch. Wilderness corrects this oblivion because one learns who they are and who they are not.
The boys spoke of firing a .58 caliber percussion black powder rifle. I assume it was an 1861 Enfield. They touched a piece of history, which both Union and Confederate forces used during the Civil War. They built trails, removed tree stumps, and honed their leadership and team skills in challenge courses.
I wish I could have been part of their team. Hiking with these remarkable young men — Noah Ford, Drake DiPaolo, Brian Ling, Thomas Mayer and Travis Blaine — would be an extraordinary experience. But I had my time. However, with more than 50 years of trekking the wilds of the world, I’m not yet done. Wilderness poses profound questions about the importance of our schemes, and I have more to learn.
I trust they understood the subliminal essence of the video they shared of sitting under a tarp in the rain singing “Twist and Shout.” Luke Bender was right when he said, “You get a little jubilant.”
The boys of 507 went into the woods and came out the other side taller than the trees.
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JOE PUGLIA is a practicing counselor, a retired professor of education and a former officer in the Marines. Reach him at doctorjoe@ymail.com. Visit his website at doctorjoe.us.
