Fire has a special spot in a Scout’s heart. Can you remember your first outing and sitting by the campfire? How you were drawn to sit by it, stare into it and then feed it with a stick? Then you learned how to make a fire! First you made fire with matches and then maybe with only a bow and a stick. It brought you warmth, joy, excitement and wonder. Perhaps there was the time that you might have had to dry out a pair of wet socks or a damp sleeping bag before you could sleep. Remember the singing under the stars, the stories and warmth on a cold night with friends all about you? Beyond the natural draw of the flame and the warmth, campfires have a special draw. Why does the spirit of the campfire go to our heart? Where did the stories and songs come from? Why do we look forward to the evening campfire?
When you hike in the California Sierra’s you can find places where the soil is dark with ashes from the campfires of Native Americans long ago. Around the campfires under the stars they held ceremonies for young boys becoming men and told stories of new paths, great hunts, and beautiful sights. From them we have stories, their love of nature, ancient trails, ceremonial traditions, and skills to live by in the wild.
Later in the same mountains, sometimes in the same campsites, the westward pioneers made their campfires as they traversed the Sierra mountain range passes. Some campfires were of joy, others of sorrow and loss as they toiled over the pass just ahead of winter as their supplies ran out. From the pioneers we take spirit and perseverance, we sing some of their songs and walk the same trails they learned from the Native Americans.
Each generation of scouts and leaders have their wisdom they pass along around the campfire. The wisdom can be as simple as a new skill like cooking over the fire, a trail they followed, a fun song that lifts the spirits after a long day or profound as a story that tells of a brave deed or ideals to live our lives by.
After each campfire comes to an end there are ashes. But ashes are not the end. From ashes come nutrients for new vibrant growth in the forest. From burnt out and exploded stars come the “ashes” which makes all life possible. We can also take from the ashes memories of events past to enrich our lives.
For some Scout Troops it is the practice to collect a few ashes from each campfire and then mix them into the next campfire. From fire to fire the ashes mingle and spread. Like the spreading ashes, the traditions are passed along by sharing songs, ceremonies and stories that they learned from scouts and people that went before them perhaps adding a new twist. In the morning they collect spoonful of ash to keep as sum total of all campfires past. With out the people and events of the past we would not have as rich and meaningful life today. Out of the ashes of the past comes life.
