The American Spectator

People were beginning to wander into the parking lot, gathering up carts and emptying their pockets into them in order to pass through the security gate. An elderly woman approached and Jared ran up to her. “Would you sign our petition saying the girls don’t have to go back to China?” he proclaimed loudly. Posse-like, the others gathered around her.

“The Chinese say they want all those Chinese girls back but we say they don’t have to,” recited Tom Brown.

“Yeah, one of them’s in my class,” volunteered Squirrel.

The woman read down the flyer and handed it back. “Well, I’ll have to think about it,” she said, moving on.

“Oh, please,” shouted a chorus but she ignored them.

“Look,” said Newman, coming over. “Didn’t I tell you not to bunch up like that? It’s intimidating to have a gang of boys shouting at you. Now spread out, just one at a time.”

“Boy Scouts!” came a voice from directly behind them before the group could scatter. They turned and saw a red-faced man swaying towards them. “I used to be a Boy Scout,” he proclaimed and raised his right hand, three fingers aloft. “On my honor, I promise to do my best, to do my duty to God and my country, and to obey the Scout Law. To help other people at all times. To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight.”

The man flushed with pride as he finished.

“Did you used to be a Scout around here?” asked Jared gingerly.

“Troop 28,” said the man proudly. “We used to go to spend every summer at Spanish Peaks. Ride horses, shoot bows and arrows. It was great.”

“What rank did you make?” asked Darien politely.

“First class,” said the man, a little embarrassed. “I never did get the hang of that merit badge stuff.”

“You could come camping with us,” said Squirrel. “We rescued a boy from a cliff. Want to see how?”

“Here, why don’t you let me talk to this gentleman,” said Newman, pushing to the front. “You guys get out there and gather some more signatures.”

“Yeah, would you sign our petition about the Chinese girls going back to China?” said Darien, offering his clipboard.