Good Turn - The One That Costs Something
| Category: | Do A Good Turn Daily |
|---|---|
| Notes: | Best for older Cub Scouts and Scouts BSA-age youth. Part of a series - see also good-turn-nobody-saw and good-turn-pass-it-on. |
Some Good Turns are easy. You hold a door. You pick up a piece of trash. It takes three seconds and costs you nothing. Those are good, and we should do lots of them.
But every once in a while, a Good Turn is going to cost you something.
It might cost you time. Your friend needs help studying on the same night you wanted to play video games.
It might cost you comfort. It's cold and raining at camp, and somebody has to go refill the water jugs. You're already dry in the tent.
It might cost you something you really wanted. There's one seat left by the fire, or one piece of cobbler left in the Dutch oven, and a younger Scout hasn't had any yet.
It might cost you a little pride. Standing up for a kid nobody likes means people might not like you much either, at least for a while.
Those are the Good Turns that matter most, because they're the ones that change you. Anybody can be helpful when it's free. Choosing to give up something you'd rather keep is where character gets built.
You won't always choose right. Nobody does. But the next time a Good Turn is going to cost you, notice it. Then decide what kind of Scout you want to be.