Some years ago a hard-nosed coach said, "Winning isn't everything, but it sure beats whatever's second. " There's some truth in that. Everyone likes to win. Very few people enjoy losing.

The trouble is that in every type of competition, there must be losers as well as winners. That's true in sports and it's also true in the competitions we will have next week at our camp-out (or camporee).

It's also true in life. You and every other human being find that sometimes you have to be a loser. Perhaps your sports team loses a game on an unlucky break. Or maybe you work hard in school but get low grades. Some people might say you're a loser.

Maybe so. But you don't have to stay a loser. The real difference between winners and losers is that a loss makes some people more determined to do better next time. In the long run they are the winners because they learn to profit by their defeats and mistakes.

No, winning isn't everything. We can learn from losses, too. Let's remember that at the campout and in the years to come.