What I Learned from Girl Scouts

[Mike Oliver]

Yes, it's true. I learned something from Girl Scouts last weekend. Let me explain.

I was contacted by a troupe leader recently who was interested in getting her scouts into a short, one-hour self-defense class. I explained what my fee would be (a box of Girl Scout Cookies of course!) and we set a date.

That day at the center, there were quite a few classes going on--the kids hip-hop classes down the hall were rockin'. Another instructor was not happy with the noise that those classes were generating since his class required a certain amount of concentration. His public complaints and harsh words left a bad taste in all of our mouths--you could feel the negativity in the air.

Then they came. A whole troupe of girl scouts and their mothers invaded the Coloma Community Center with their smiles and laughter. In seconds the air was wiped clean and the whole center was alive with youthful, smiling energy.

Our class was great! The girls enjoyed learning some karate moves and really put their all into everything. When we talked about bullies and how to defuse conflicts with Verbal Judo they listened with enthusiastic ears. I thought for sure that these confident, smiling girls had no problems with bullies in school, but I was wrong. When I asked for questions from the kids and parents I learned that wasn't true. It reminded me that even involved, well-adjusted kids get picked on at school sometimes.

The important lesson that I learned though, is that smiles and laughter can change the air. Thank you for teaching me girls.

And thanks for the cookies. ;)

[Holly ODonnell]

I love girl scouts. And girl scout cookies. I bet they had a lot of fun learning karate. That's really different for them.

[Susan Bitar]

Great story!