2023-13 Rock Tumbling
The past couple of weeks my daughter and I have been tumbling rocks using her rock polishing tumbler she received as one of her Christmas presents this last year. If you have never used a rock tumbler before, here is a quick run through of what is entailed using one. The rocks that you are wanting to polish are place inside the cylinder chamber. Typically, there are 4 different grades of grit you place inside the tumbler with the rocks along with enough water to cover. Starting with your stage 1 grit, the duration of tumbling time depends on the type of rocks you are tumbling and how much you would like to shape them.
We decided to tumble some Tiger’s Eye that we picked up at a rock shop just outside of Zion National Park from our last trip there a few weeks ago. If you don’t know what Tiger’s Eye is, it’s a form of quartz that is usually brown in color and is found among other metamorphic rocks. The pattern of this rock when held up to the light resembles that of a tiger’s eye. The piece that we picked up from the rock shop was a single piece that was too large to fit within the opening of the rock tumbling cylinder. So… we grabbed our trusty rock hammer and started smashing it into smaller pieces. There must have been a little bit of flint within the rock as sparks would fly each time the hammer would hit.
Success! One large piece of Tiger’s Eye had been broken into roughly eight smaller pieces. We placed all the pieces within the cylinder along with a heaping spoon of step one grit and water. Ensuring that the lid was on tight, we let the rock tumbler begin. This first round was going to take about 4 days to smooth out the jagged pieces of Tiger’s Eye. Each day we would check on the progress. It was amazing to see the transformation of sharp edges being smoothed out and rounded as we eventually put them through step 2 and 3. The final process, step 4, is the final polishing tumble that will make each stone shine to its full potential.
We can compare our scouting experience to the processes of polishing rocks. When we start on our Cub Scout or Scout BSA adventure, we are a little rough around the edges. It’s ok if we have rough edges when we first start out. Everything is new to us. Over time we continue with earning the ranks of Bobcat, Wolf, Bear, Webelos. Within Scouts BSA we earn the rank of Scout, Tenderfoot, Second Class, First Class. Eventually our rough edges begin to smooth out as we learn valuable skills through each meeting, hike, campout, and adventures. Before you know it, a great deal of time has passed and what used to be a rough-edged scout has now been through so much that you have been shaped into a bright and polished Arrow of Light or Eagle Scout.
Just like polishing rocks, your trail to Eagle will take many days. Don’t be discouraged when things do not go as fast as you would like. It’s been my experience that everything that is worthwhile takes a little bit of time to accomplish. Keep up the good work scouts, your hard work will pay off some day.