Thinking Day

Dear sisters and brothers,

In closing his last message to us all, B-P wrote: "...stick to your
promise always, even after you have ceased to be a boy..." and obviously
nowadays a girl also.

It is the promise that makes our Movement so different from every other
youth movement and organisation in society, it is loyalty to that
commitment that makes us Scouts, rather that simply people dedicating or
having dedicated some time of our life to Scouting.

Today we commemorate the joint birthday of B-P and his wife Olave, in a
very special historical moment, as this date is also the 150th
anniversary of B-P's birth and falls in the Centenary of Scouting.

In these hundred years, hundreds of millions of girls and boys, women
and men have made the commitment to do their best to leave the world a
little better than they found it, and in many places and in different
moments in time, Scouts have really made the difference!

In the present times of increasing disparities, world wide tensions and
growing conflicts, where due to irresponsible life-styles humanity is
seriously putting our planet's environmental stability at risk, and so
grows the dramatic need for more, good Scouts.

Let the centenary year also be the occasion for a special commitment.
Renewing our Promise today, we should not only look at the past with
gratitude to B-P, and to all those who opened for us "the road to
success", giving us the opportunity to live the unique, exciting and
involving experience that is Scouting. We should also look with optimism
and courage toward the future, with the fleur de lys and our promise
firmly guiding us in the direction of creating a better world.

Yours in Scouting,

Eduardo Missoni
Secretary General