The Return of Chico

Hands down the best, I mean absolute best, job I've ever had is working as a Ranger at Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico. The year was 1995. That was the year I started going out with Amanda, so it was a pretty sweet year. My grandfather also died that summer so well it wasn't all sweet.

I've got so many stories to tell about Philmont that they could fill a book. Tonight I just wanted to tell you about the Return of Chico.

I haven't heard that name for ages. When I started working at Philmont and we were doing the Ranger training, somebody asked me where I was from so I told them I was going to school at Chico. So it started and that is what they called me at camp all summer. It sort of took a life of its own and lived with me in so many different ways that summer.

After the summer I realized that there would never be another summer like that again. I'm sure you've had summers like that. So Chico disappeared with the memories of camp. I had forgotten about Chico.

I just got suckered into being a cub scout leader. I say suckered because we wanted Julian to join cubs and it seemed that if I didn't become a leader that he would be on the waiting list until he joined at age 35. So he's in cubs now and I'm a leader. When I joined the Scout Leader and I shared tall tales about the scouts. So he started calling me Chico. At first it was weird hearing those words again. I didn't really respond to it. It was like he was addressing someone else. But then like it spread it Philmont, people just decided to call me Chico. Now it's been 3 weeks that Chico has crept back into my life. I also wear my Philmont belt pretty much all the time and we're taking the cubs to camp at Lake Kielder in a few weeks time.

But the thing that bowls me over is the feeling that I get when Julian calls me Chico. As soon as we arrive at the cub den, Julian immediately switches from calling me Dad or Dada. When we're there I'm no longer dad, it's just Chico. "Hey Chico, I'm stealing your wallet. Hey Chico... hey Chico... hey Chicoooooooo."

So Chico has Returned just like that. Who would have thought it. Yet as fun as it is to be Chico again, nothing beats having a sweet son that loves you and thinks that you are pretty cool.