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I am a mother of four and a Cub Scout volunteer leader. I have just finished my first young readers chapter book called "Adventures in Cub Scouting - Cub Scout Summer Camp." This will be the first in a series based on the adventures of the Cub Scouts in Pack 75 from Alexandria, LA. The story is told from the prospective of my son, Ethan, who is a Webelos Scout and has been in the Pack for four years. Scouting is such a wonderful program! I want to be able to share these stories will fellow Scouters and hopefully it will also reach children who are not yet involved in Scouting and will inspire them to join!

Here is a sample chapter. If you like it and can recommend a publisher, please let me know. If you have any thoughts or suggestions, I would love to hear those as well.

A Real Indian Campfire
After dinner we got ready for the campfire. We went back to the Ayres building to retrieve the costumes we had made earlier today. Ms. Mary had brought our drums over there too so it would all be together. I put back on my cream colored camp t-shirt that I had been wearing throughout the day, except for dinner, and then donned my vest.

Excitement was buzzing about tonight’s campfire! We knew it would be special since we were all dressed up like this. When it was time to go I put the shield on my left arm and tucked the drum under my elbow and took off with the rest of the group. Mom was wearing her Native American dress as she had worn the other night. She looked really pretty with her hair braided like that.

We were supposed to meet at the flag pole and we would separate back into tribes. As the Webelos all arrived, we went and stood with Ms. Terry and Ms. Shannon, our Tribal Elders. The other Scouts did the same and we became three separate groups standing together. Mom and Ms. Mary went to stand with Mr. Neil at the front. They had now transformed back into their roles as Indian Princess Alisa, Indian Princess Mary and Medicine Man Neil. Chief Richard and Chief Vince were nowhere in sight.

Medicine Man Neil then stepped forward, lifted his rattle in the air and began to shake it in an attempt to gain everyone’s silence. It finally worked and he spoke “Tonight we will take a journey together. We will explore our lands and search for the spirits of the Tigers, the Wolfs, the Bears, the Bobcats and the creatures that make the Webelos.”

“As you follow me, listen for their sounds and repeat them if you hear them. Please line up youngest to oldest. I need the Comanche Tribe first followed by the Sioux Tribe and then the Apache Tribe. Please follow me.”

All of the Scouts lined up by their tribes with their Tribal Leaders at the back of their group. The other parents followed to the side and Indian Princesses Mary and Alisa trailed at the end.

“Please tap your drum to the beat of my rattle” Medicine Man Neil commanded.

Shake, shake, shake.
Tap, tap, tap.
Shake, shake…shake, shake.
Tap, tap…tap, tap.

We shook and tapped as we marched around. Suddenly Medicine Man Neil came to a stop.
“Do you hear that?” he asked. “I hear the sound of the Tiger and the Bobcat as they growl at the wind. Let us growl with them.”
Growl, growl, growl.

We continued to march and shake and tap until he stopped again. We had marched around the trading post building and heading for the woods behind Gilwell Shelter.

“I hear the howl of our brother the Wolf, let us howl with him.
Howl, howl, howl.

And we marched and shook and tapped again. Then he stopped and jumped in the air!
“I hear the growl of the bear. It is much deeper and louder than the growl of the jungle cats. Let us growl as the bear does.”
GROWL, GROWL, GROWL!!!

Then we continued to march, still tapping our drums to the beat of the rattle. We had gone past the woods and were walking towards the Council Ring.

Medicine Man Neil spoke “Tonight we will show the respect to the creature of the Webelos, for his sound is laughter. Please laugh loud along with me.”
“HA HA HA”

As we approached the Council Ring I could see Chief Richard and Chief Vince holding torches in the center, they stood very still.

Then Chief Richard raised his torch “Welcome young braves. We are glad you have joined us tonight. Please come and have a seat.”

After we were all seated Indian Princess Alisa, Indian Princess Mary and Medicine Man Neil took their places at the front. They were each dressed the same as they had been at our opening campfire, face paint and all.

Chief Vince stepped forward with his torch. “I need your help starting the campfire tonight! Yell after me everything I say!”

He held his torch high in the air and yelled “To the North we call… Spirit Red. Thy hunger must be fed” and the Scouts repeated.

Then he made a turn to his right. “To the East we call… Spirit Hot. Forget us not” and the Scouts repeated.

His next turn had is back facing us. “To the South we call… Spirit Gold. As the year grows old, keep us from cold” and the Scouts repeated.

The final turn had Chief Vince facing a neatly piled stack of wood in the place which held our campfires. “To the West we call… Spirit White. In the darkness of night, be our shining light” and the Scouts repeated.

After we spoke the last word a fire was lit in the sky under a nearby tree. The fire started moving down in a perfect line to the pile of wood. There were many sounds coming from the crowd ‘wow’ and ‘look at that’ were among a few. And then the fire hit the wood and it burst into flames!!!
The crowd erupted into cheers! I had never seen a fire start that way before!

“Tonight we will start with a Native American story from Indian Princess Mary” Chief Vince announced.
Indian Princess Mary stepped forward and began to tell the story:

“Long, long ago the Indians had no fire and no light. They suffered much during the cold winter and they had to eat food uncooked. They also had to live in darkness because there was no light.

“There was no sun, moon or stars in the sky.” Mom and Mr. Neil and Mr. Vince all kneeled down on the ground in front of Ms. Mary and put their heads on the ground. “A great Chief” Chief Richard then stepped forward and crossed his arms over his chest looking at the three in front of him “kept them locked up in a box. He took great pride in the thought that he alone had light. This great Chief had a beautiful daughter of whom he was also very proud. She was much beloved by all the Indians of the tribe.

“In those days, the raven had the powers of magic. He was a great friend of the Indians and the Indian Chief. He wondered how he might make life more comfortable for them.

“One day he saw the daughter of the Chief come down to the brook for a drink. He had an idea. He would put a magic spell on her. In time a son would be born to the daughter of the Chief. The old Chief was delighted and as the boy grew, his grandfather became devoted to him. Anything he wanted he could have.

“One day he asked the old Chief for the box containing the stars. Reluctantly, the old Chief gave it to him. The child played for a while by rolling the box around. Then he released the stars and flung them into the sky.” Mom jumped up and began to run around with a huge smile on her faces and beaming her arms in and out from her head, the Chief looked upset. “The Indians were delighted. This was some light, but not quite enough.

“After a few days, the child asked for box containing the moon. Again the old Chief hesitated but finally the boy got what he wanted. Again after playing a while with the box, the boy released the moon and flung it into the sky.” Mr. Neil jumped up and ran just as my mom had. The Chief looked even more upset. “The tribe members were overjoyed. But still there was not enough light, and the moon disappeared for long periods.” Mr. Neil would run behind the trees and then out again.

“Finally, the child asked for the box with the sun. ‘No’ cried the old Chief ‘I cannot give you that’” As Ms. Mary told the story, Chief Richard repeated the cries of the Chief. “But the boy wept and pleaded. The old Chief could not stand the tears, so he gave the box to him. As soon as he had a chance, the child released the sun and cast it into the sky.” Mr. Vince jumped up at that moment and ran around the circle jumping up and down smiling and beaming with his hands.

“The joy of the Indians knew no bounds. Here was light enough and heat as well. They ordered a feast of the sun and all the Indians celebrated it with great jubilation. And the old Chief was happy. He had not known the sun, the moon and the stars could mean so much for the comfort and happiness of his people.” Now Mom, Mr. Neil and Mr. Vince were all jumping and running and smiling acting as the sun, the moon and the stars. “And for the first time, he too enjoyed himself.” Chief Richard looked at the sun (Mr. Vince), the moon (Mr. Neil) and the stars (mom) and smiled and laughed.

This was the end of the story, all of the leaders then lined up to take a bow. A large round of applause came from the crowd.

Then all became quiet and Chief Vince went over to a large drum in the center of the Council Ring. He began drumming a low beat.

Chief Richard stepped into the center to address us “Tonight you will be learning two Native American dances. I will teach you a group dance and then a partner dance. I would like the Sioux and Comanche Tribes to join me.”

The Bears, Wolfs and Tigers left the bleachers and formed a line behind Chief Richard.

“This is a very simple dance. You will take two quick steps forward on your left leg with a small hopping motion; this is the leg your bells should be on. So it is quick, quick, stomp – quick, quick, stomp. Follow me and follow the beat of the drum.”
The drum beat started again and Chief Vince chanted along.

“Haw Haw Haw-ya, Haw Haw Haw-ya”
Step-Jingle, Step-Jingle, Stomp-Jingle.
“Haw Haw Haw-ya, Haw Haw Haw-ya”
Step-Jingle, Step-Jingle, Stomp-Jingle.

The braves danced following Chief Richard as he swirled them around the Council Ring. They continued…

“Hey-ya Hey-ya Haw-Haw, Hey-ya Hey-ya Haw-Haw”
Step-Jingle, Step-Jingle, Stomp-Jingle.
“Hey-ya Hey-ya Haw-Haw, Hey-ya Hey-ya Haw-Haw”
Step-Jingle, Step-Jingle, Stomp-Jingle.

It was really neat watching them dance. We had all dressed in our Native American costumes tonight and looked like real Indian Braves. They took it very seriously and stayed in rhythm with the drum beats. I couldn’t wait for my turn.

The drum beats and chants stopped and the Indian Braves returned to their seats. It was our turn now.

“Will the Apache Braves please join me?” asked Chief Richard. “Were you watching the steps I showed the other Braves? We will be doing the same dance.”

We formed a line and began the steps with the fresh beating of the drum. Chief Vince chanted along.

“Haw Haw Haw-ya, Haw Haw Haw-ya”
Step-Jingle, Step-Jingle, Stomp-Jingle.
“Haw Haw Haw-ya, Haw Haw Haw-ya”
Step-Jingle, Step-Jingle, Stomp-Jingle.

The drum became louder…
“Hey-ya Hey-ya Haw-Haw, Hey-ya Hey-ya Haw-Haw”
Step-Jingle, Step-Jingle, Stomp-Jingle.
“Hey-ya Hey-ya Haw-Haw, Hey-ya Hey-ya Haw-Haw”
Step-Jingle, Step-Jingle, Stomp-Jingle.

We danced around the ring swerving in and out in circular patterns. We did not return to our seats when the dancing ended. Instead Chief Richard asked all of the other Scouts to join us.

“We will now be dancing a pair’s dance, so you boys need to partner up. Face each other and join right hand to right hand and left hand to left hand.”

Naturally Alex was my partner. The leaders each grabbed a parent from the audience for a dance partner. My mom danced with Ms. Melissa’s son who looked about six and a half feet tall. She is really short, so that looked funny.

“We will dance in the same style as before, leading with our left leg. Keeping your hands locked turn and face the front of the line. Follow the lead of the pair in front of you.”

The drumming and chanting began and the leaders in front began to move forward. We followed along as they snaked in and out, in and out. Then the dance changed. The leaders in front stopped, faced each other, spread apart and raised their locked arms together to form an arch in which the pair behind danced under. As each pair went under the arch, they too formed one. The arch became longer and longer until the first pair to form an arch pulled it down and began to dance under the rest. The continued until the entire arch was gone. It was interesting when the adults had to dance under the kid’s arms, especially the tall boy with mom!

We continued to snake in a line for a while until the leaders broke apart and held hands side by side. Chief Richard asked us to form a circle and we all held our hands together in the air. We pulled the circle in tight until we were all squished together and then pulled back out until our arms were stretched as far as they would go.

Over and over we danced. We pulled back into the original line and even did the arch part of the dance again. At the end of the dancing we all gathered around the drum and chanted with Mr. Vince. This felt like a real Indian Pow Wow. I had never experienced anything like this before. It was great!

But all great things must come to an end. As the fire began to die down, so did our campfire activities. We took our seats back on the bleachers. The leaders formed a line to tell us good night using Indian sign language.

They all spoke together “Good” as they said this they moved their right hand in an outward sweeping motion from their waist to their shoulders.

“Night” – they put both palms together under their left cheek and inclined their heads.

“Cub” – they formed circles between their fingers and thumbs and placed them on either side of the tops of their heads while they puffed out their cheeks.

“Scouts” – they moved their right hands to shade their eyes as in a Scout salute.

Chief Richard spoke “Good night braves, we will see you in the morning, sleep well.”

I am a mother of four and a Cub Scout volunteer leader. I have just finished my first young readers chapter book called "Adventures in Cub Scouting - Cub Scout Summer Camp." This will be the first in a series based on the adventures of the Cub Scouts in Pack 75 from Alexandria, LA. The story is told from the prospective of my son, Ethan, who is a Webelos Scout and has been in the Pack for four... More