I have been in Scouting since the 6th grade I joined Troop Essay

I have been in Scouting since the 6th grade. I joined Troop 1 and had hoped my friends would join me in doing the same. However, many of my friends decided to join other troops or simply not join at all. Finding myself in a new troop with no friends left me feeling lost and alone. I tried really hard convincing friends to join the same troop with me. Unfortunately, I was not successful. A few of my friends joined other troops which they found to be fun and did not adhere to the strict rules and discipline Troop 1 followed. Some friends did not join at all because Scouting was nerdy to them. This made me begin to wonder what Scouting would do to my reputation and even made me start to reconsider. As I continued with Scouting alone, I found it was not that bad. I became friends with other kids with different interests whom I would not have normally met, like Joseph. Joseph and I started Boy Scouts at the same time which meant we were both in the same newbie patrol. We often found ourselves doing fun activities together like when were on the same raft navigating our way down the currents of the American River. When we were in charge of cooking on another trip, we won a camp cooking contest with our gumbo recipe. I now made a new friend in Scouting and learned I was good at cooking, a skill I will continue using for the rest of my life. Through Scouting, I also learned leadership skills and how to use them effectively. My Eagle project is the construction of a portable organic garden to be used by my high school’s nutrition director and benefits my high school’s food service department. The nutrition director emphasizes the importance of healthy nutrition and this portable garden would allow her to spread her philosophy of farm to table to the students. This Eagle project experience taught me true leadership. I learned good leaders lead but they also listen and are willing to adapt and make adjustments when necessary to reach their goal. Rather than give up, a leader must remain committed until reaching success. This is an important value that is very true in life and one I intend to follow. I am currently a Life Scout with my Eagle Board of Review to be scheduled in the next few weeks. I am confident I will earn my Eagle rank and become a proud Eagle Scout. Although I was alone and did not have my friends with me on my Scouting journey, I learned to step out of my comfort zone, try something different on my own and did my best to succeed and grow. Through my Scouting experience, I learned you never know what opportunities are available unless you take risks. Once I was fully committed to Troop 1, I embraced the troop’s values and discipline. I am proud of who I am and what I have accomplished. It started with commitment, staying the course and putting everything I had into it. That is what I did and it resulted in experiencing new challenges and interests. I look forward to continue seeking new challenges and opening new doors as I embark on my next journey into college.