Light! Damnit! Light!

I had the distinct experience of going through several years of Girl Scouts while growing up. Fortunately, I had friends to "share the pain" with me. In the end we ended up with some pretty funny memories of different shenanigans. The most popular memory being of the time one of our fellow scouts getting stuck in a urinal at a Lock-In.

The troop I belonged to wasn't huge on badges, or maybe I wasn't, but our leaders insisted on some sort of pomp and circumstance come the end of a school year. One year, the leaders decided that we needed to light candles and talk about the freedoms we have in this country and what we all would do as Girl Scouts to protect those freedoms. This led to much hilarity as we tried to light candles while reading the little notecards provided to us. The shining moment in it all was my friend Anne trying to get the candle to light. In her frustration she exclaimed "Light damnit! Light!" She was admonished by our Leaders, but not before the rest of us had bust out laughing (if I remember correctly).

Anyhow, this all came rushing back as I looked through some of the many papers I brought back to Jamestown from my parent's house. I found the notecard I had to read while light the candle. When we practiced we also read anything and everything written on the note, including emphasizing anything that was underlined (in italics).:
Scout #4 -
"May the light of this candle shine as a symbol that I will serve My Country. (Light #4) In a democracy everyone counts, and I am important because I am part of the vast nation of people who respect human freedom. And because we respect human freedom, we shall take responsibility in serving our country to keep it free."

Sure, it was a good message but we just weren't in the mood for it I guess. By June, most kids don't give two hoots about ceremony and just want to get on with vacation. Still. Good times.