Life as a Girl Scout

When I was growing up, all of my friends were in girl scouts. It was like a cult--they were always together and doing random activities. They went on camping trips, went to ceremonies, did volunteer work, and sold cookies while I secretly smirked at the thought of wearing a vest covered in badges and having to sing silly songs around a fire. But I was also a little jealous--they spent so much time together, and they had so many stories to tell every time they came back from a trip or event. For my alternate identity, I decided to fulfill a role I never got to be as a little girl, and I became a girl scout for 48 hours.

Pretty convincing, huh?

Luckily, because pretty much ALL of my friends are/were in girl scouts, I had my choice of attire. My roommate actually brought her brownie vest to college because she figured it might come in handy for random SB parties, but I wasn't trying to be in elementary school, so I nixed that option.

"My" brownie vest

Instead I opted for a full sized, cadette status vest that my friend brought with her when she visited over the weekend. Her hard work as a girl scout paid off, because I now had a vest covered completely in badges, pins, and girl scout insignia which made me look even more authentic. Even though she claimed they only wore their vests for ceremonies, I wore mine around campus and the dorms just to make my role more easily visible.

Super decked out GS vest

In order to experience the life of a girl scout, I wanted to participate in the stereotypical activities. On Saturday night, I organized a BBQ for my friends at the beach so I could show off my camping/grill skills. Supposedly real girl scouts have super strict regulations and aren't actually allowed to start their own fires, but I'm obviously too hard core to put up with that sexism. I struggled at first, but once I got the grill going everyone enjoyed their hot dogs and s'mores, and my first camping mission was a success.

Grillin skills

My friends got a kick out of watching me run around in my vest, but I tried to not let it embarrass me. I thought this role wouldn't be as mortifying as some other personas, but I'm quick to blush and felt awkward asking them to document me. I tried my best to stick to being a proud scout, even if it meant cheesy smiles.

Cheesy smile exhibit A...

After the BBQ I came back to my dorm and decided that sleeping in a bed wasn't going to give me the full camping experience, so I grabbed a sleeping bag and headed out to the lawn in front of FT. It was around midnight when I got out there, and a few stumbling freshman assumed I had just had a rough night and passed out. I stayed outside and stargazed until the stragglers were inside, and then attempted to sleep on the slightly damp grass. I was out there for probably half an hour before a CSO came and told me that I wasn't allowed to sleep on the lawn and asked why on earth I would want to do so in the first place...

"Camping" on the FT lawn

The next day I wanted to make some sales, because selling cookies and learning how to engage in business matters is a big part of the organization. However, I decided that cookies were far too unhealthy, and that my fellow students would much rather indulge in nature's dessert--fruits! I packed a box full of fruit and went door to door in my dorm trying to give it away. Some people were thoroughly confused and slowly closed the door after realizing I was just a girl in a girl scout vest but without delicious cookies. A few people actually appreciated the gesture and grabbed a piece. I gave out some fruit in front of the library too, and gave Alyssa one of my last apples during the Art 7A final.

Delivering fruit to my floormates

As part of my "community service," I tried to pick up all litter I found around IV and on campus. If I had access to any elderly folk I would've helped them across the street. But alas, I had to settle for small acts of kindness like cleaning up in the dining commons and chirping hello to all pedestrians.

I don't really think being a fake scout for 48 hours gave me the experience I would have had if I had actually gone from brownie to cadette or had spent hours on a GOLD award project. But I do have a new found respect for my friends who remained scouts all throughout high school. I definitely got looks from people when I was in public, and I had difficulty explaining why I was doing what I was doing. People seem to only associate girl scouts with cookies, and since I didn't have any to offer, I was pretty much rejected. This assignment was fun and silly, which is what I always presumed the organization to be. I'm now back in regular clothing and will continue to do random acts of kindness, because everyone should be generous, interested, reliable, loyal, curious, and out-doorsy even if they're not a girl scout ;)