When things in your life seem almost too much to handle,

When 24 hours in a day is not enough;

remember the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him.

When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar

and started to fill it with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured it into the jar.

He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.

Of course, the sand filled up everything else

He asked once more if the jar was full... The students responded

With an unanimous 'yes.'

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table

and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand.

The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor, as the laughter subsided,

'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life.

The golf balls are the important things - Family, children, health, spirituality, friends, and favorite passions.

Things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the things that matter like your job, house, and car.

The sand is everything else

The small stuff.

'If you put the sand into the jar first,' he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls.

The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff,

You will never have room for the things that are important to you.

So...

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.

Play with your children.

Take time to get medical checkups.

Take your partner out to dinner.

There will always be time to clean the house and fix the dripping tap.

'Take care of the golf balls first --

The things that really matter.

Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand

and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled.

'I'm glad you asked'.

It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem,

there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.'

Shared with me by a friend - Lito

Two thousand Eleven, is a new year. You already know that but what are you going to accomplish in this year. What goals and accomplishments do you anticipate? I encourage each of you to sit down and look forward to the day you want your Eagle court of Honor and then look back from then to now and set goals for working toward that court of honor.

You have the potential to accomplish great things! You can do what ever you dream. You have the asset of your fellow Troop members and if it is really worth while the Order of the Arrow and growing from there the district and Council. It all starts with an idea. It could be yours. Tragedy would be if you never shared it and acted on it.

Thomas enjoyed experimenting with the propellant and firing a potato gun. He got the idea to have the Troop build the potato gun and use it for Encampment. It was a big success for the Troop.

Teamwork and Friendship

Kevin and his family are mourning the loss of his grandfather. This is a time of saddness and sorrow for them. What is our responsibility to him and his family?Not only is he a member of Troop 440 but he is our friend.

As a member of our team, Troop 440, we are expected to support our fellow team members, how far does this go?

As a friend we are expected to help him feel better. How do you do this?

Think about it and share your answers with your Mom and Dad. If you wish you can share with me and the Troop as well.

I am proud how we jumped at the chance to serve our brothers in time of need, lets go the extra mile for them as best as we can!

For the Next One Hundred Years

With new leadership at the national level and BSA having reached a centennial, we are given new heights to achieve. The centennial edition of the Boy Scout Handbook will soon be available, and with the new handbook come several rank requirement changes that will be in effect as of January 1, 2010. I have copied from the National website the new requirements taking effect January 1, 2010 below. There is a new term you will want to get to know "EDGE™" model. Teaching EDGE™—Explain, Demonstrate, Guide, Enable The Teaching "EDGE™" tool is a simple four-step process used for teaching any skill. Explain—The trainer explains how something is done. Demonstrate—The trainer demonstrates while explaining again.Guide—The learner tries the skill while the trainer guides him through it.Enable—The learner works on his own under the eye of the trainer. This concept is taught in the National Youth Leadership Training courses and Nicholas having been through NYLT can help teach it to our Troop.

Tenderfoot

• A Scout must teach another person how to tie a square knot using the EDGE model (explain, demonstrate, guide, and enable). He must also be able to discuss four specific examples of how he lived the points of the Scout Law in his daily life.

Second Class

• A Scout must discuss the principles of Leave No Trace and explain the factors to consider when choosing a patrol site and where to pitch a tent.
• He must explain what respect is due the flag of the United States.
• He must again discuss four examples of how he lived four different points of the Scout Law in his daily life.
• He must earn an amount of money agreed upon by the Scout and his parents and save at least 50 percent of it.

First Class

• An additional requirement to the 10 separate troop/patrol activities states he must demonstrate the principles of Leave No Trace on these outings.
• He must discuss four more examples of how he lived the remaining four points of the Scout Law in his daily life.

Life

• A Scout must use the EDGE model to teach a younger Scout a specified skill.

Star, Life, and Eagle

• Troop Webmaster and Leave No Trace trainer are two new leadership positions.

Travel by Compass

HOW A COMPASS WORKS A thousand years ago, someone noticed that a magnetized needle floating in a bowl of water would swing around to point in a northerly direction. Soon the needle became the centerpiece of the compass, and travelers had a valuable tool for helping them find their way. Today's compasses are easy to use. They work equally well in summer and winter, and are accurate at sea level, on mountaintops, and everywhere in between. Compasses available to Boy Scouts range from those for beginners to instruments for masters of navigation.
Make Your Own Ancient Compass To build a replica of the world's first compass, you'll need: 1 large sewing needle 1 bar magnet such as those found in school science classrooms 1 very small, flat chip of wood. 1 bowl of water Magnetize the needle by stroking it a few times with the magnet from the eye toward the point. Float the chip on the water. Carefully place the needle on the chip. Soon the needle will be pointing toward Magnetic North. Check the direction by looking at a compass. The needle in the compass should match the direction of the needle on the water. Using a Compass The magnetized needle of a modern compass is balanced on a pin so that it can swing freely. The needle is enclosed in a housing that rotates on the compass base plate. One end of the needle is drawn toward the Earth's Magnetic North Pole, an area about 500 miles from the true North Pole. Most compasses have an orienting arrow etched on the floor of the housing and a direction of travel arrow drawn on the base plate. Numbers on the housing indicate the 360 degrees of a circle. To find Magnetic North, adjust the compass housing until N (North) on the housing touches the direction of travel arrow, as in the photograph above. Next, hold the compass against your stomach with the direction of travel arrow pointing away from you. Turn your body until the needle is lined up inside the orienting arrow etched on the floor of the compass housing. Your direction of travel arrow is now pointing directly toward Magnetic North. Declination Compass needles point to Magnetic North. Maps are drawn with True North at the top. The difference between the direction of Magnetic North (where a compass needle points) and the direction of True North (a line between you and the North Pole) is called declination . Declination is measured in degrees -- those numbers on the compass housing. When you are in much of Wisconsin, Illinois, eastern Arkansas, or Mississippi, the directions toward Magnetic North and the North Pole are in line with one another. A compass pointing at Magnetic North seems to be pointing at the North Pole, too. Go east or west of those states and the Poles seem to move apart from one another. Declination (the difference between the direction to Magnetic North and the way to True North) increases. By the time you reach Seattle, for example, the declination is more than 20 degrees. Map margins often have two arrows, one pointing toward Magnetic North, the other toward True North. With N on the compass housing touching the direction of travel arrow, set your compass alongside the Magnetic North arrow on a map. Slowly turn the map until the compass needle rests inside the orienting arrow. The compass will be aimed at Magnetic North while the map is oriented to True North. Digital Compasses Electronic sensors inside a digital compass pick up on the Earth's magnetic fields and display accurate degree readings. Programmable adjustments automatically solve the challenge of declination. Some cellular telephones feature a compass application that acts in much the same way as the most advanced electronic route finder--the GPS receiver. GPS Receivers as Compasses Enter destination data into an automobile Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver and a map will appear on the dashboard screen showing exactly how to get to where you want to go. The GPS unit will also indicate the direction the car is moving. Handheld GPS receivers can be valuable tools for backcountry navigation, too. Type in destination coordinates and the GPS will show the way. A GPS unit can guide you even when the weather is so bad you can't see a thing. If its battery dies, a GPS unit or digital compass will be useless. That's why it is so important to learn how to use a traditional compass and to have one handy on all your backcountry adventures.

Pack Your Car the Smart Way

We are all thinking of getting away, it is that time of year. A few tips to pack your car can help you get out of town with ease. Before you pack. Before you start packing, take EVERYTHING out of the car. In fact, now's a great time to clean the interior. Make sure you empty the trunk of junk. Pack backward. What you pack first in the car should be what you will use last. So you can get to them easily, things you'll need while en route, like snacks, games, maps and other trip aids should get packed last. Snacks on wheels. Munching is a required activity on road trips, but try to keep it healthy! Before you leave on a camping trip, set out bowls of raisins, granola and various nuts and let each person fill a bag. Freeze your drinks. Bring a cooler and load it with on-the-road sandwiches surrounded by juice and water you have frozen the night before. (The cold drinks will keep the food cold and will most likely defrost by the time you want to drink them.) Emergency changes. Have a couple of extra T-shirts handy in case someone spills coffee or dribbles ice cream. That will save you from having to unpack to find clean clothes, and it's easy to change in the car or in a gas-station bathroom.

Sespe Creek, Ojai, CA

Scoutmaster's Report

Putting aside the usual moments of the momentary lack of use of mental capacity resulting in poor choices that teenagers have, the trip was great and we accomplished a great deal.

I was especially proud that the boys arriving at a quarter to midnight, they quickly set up camp and were bunked in less than an hour! No wasted time sorting through gear, the kitchen, etc only the essentials were got and all without complaining or frivalous comments. It was an awesome sight to behold.

We had and eventless safe travel from Buena Park to Middle

Lion Camp in the Rose Valley Canyon of the Las Padres National Forest. Not so fortunate on the trip home. Nothing too

disasterous, the trailer got a flat [bad rim]

and my Ford Expedition couldn't handle the interior lights being left on so long so a dead battery awaited us Sunday Morning as well. Thank you goes to Mr. Edgar for taking the trailer's wheel into town where he got it fixed and filled with air rather quickly I should add. Additional thanks to Mr. Giovenetti for having jumper cables available and jump starting us getting us under way.

There was water in the creek in fact that was the high point for the boys, swimming! We found a five foot deep, 8 foot wide part of the creek and spent a fair bit of time there. Swimming was a welcome break from studying! Of coarse our main goal of photography was accomplished. Many shots were taken and I can not wait to see all the results. Remember everyone is to put together a story board for the final part of the Photography Merit Badge. We will have make up work for those who could not attend this weekend.

In addition to all this we had a conservation project at camp.

We weeded our site and

removed harmful charcoal ash earlier dumped by previous visitors to the camp site. Thomas taught Tote N Chit and Devyn [Webelos I from Pack 440] earned Outdoorsman.

I was very happy overall with this weekend and the experience. There still remains a couple of equipment recomendations Iwould like to make for Troop use. I would do this site again. I am interested to hear your thoughts and opinions of this outing too.