I just spent an amazing weekend with my 11-year-old son, Blaine, and several others. I’ve never been an avid hunter, but I have enjoyed it at times in my life, and growing up where I did in Trenton I’ve certainly been surrounded by hunters since as early as I can remember. It had been at least 10 years since I hunted last, but it was an experience that I wanted to share with Blaine, so we headed north Friday with no certain ideas of what to expect. I’m not going to go into all the hunting details, but while we did not bring a deer home, it was still a great experience. Blaine was able to take two shots, and while he missed both of them (a doe and a buck), they were both running shots and would have been impressive for most hunters – certainly for me. He got to experience the thrill of the hunt, and we spent priceless time together. He’s a great kid – and I can’t imagine how different we would be had he not entered our lives when he was 16-months old. That’s another story, but I love where it’s taken us so far. It was so nice to get back out in the woods – so peaceful, so quiet – so different than what much of our lives have become. Certainly gives time for perspective, and to settle internal and external battles that take up so much of our existence. And time to get away from the concrete and the smog and the cursing drivers and the yelling and pushing and shoving and really, really, just the endless bullshit that so often consumes our lives. It was good to be back in the land of gravel roads, farm ponds, tractors, foggy rivers and complete strangers who wave upon passing. It was good to have Blaine sitting on my lap in a blind (we only took two chairs, and there were three of us), his heart beating strongly enough that I could feel it on my chest, the breaths we took easily visible in the crisp morning air. It was good to look over at him riding in the passenger seat of our old pickup truck, as we challenged each other with “who is this?” on the radio. It was good when we ate breakfast at Lakeview and Blaine ate two orders of French toast while the other hunters lied like fishermen, but all with a good belly laugh and the unspoken understanding that a quick turn in the weather could affect the community in more ways than any politician could ever hope to. It was good after a long day of hunting to watch the Missouri Tigers kick ass and know that across the state, so many others were celebrating with us. Blaine and I spent two days exploring the incredible countryside of Grundy and Mercer Counties, and it was not only good, it was awesome. We walked all over God’s green Earth, we dragged our boots through Missouri mud, through bean fields and timber and across creeks and bridges that sustained so many Missouri families through feast and famine alike. None of this weekend for my son and I would have been possible without the help of my dear old friend, Doug Dolan, his wife, Stephanie, and the other members of the Dolan family we ran into over the weekend. The Dolan family has farmed North Central Missouri through several generations and countless changes and challenges. Family farms like these are so valuable, and so threatened, and so vital to what Missourians hold dear. Thank you, Doug, for being our guide, our friend and a role model for Blaine. A good friendship is worth more than a winning lottery ticket any day. I’ve been incredibly lucky to have an awesome group of friends for many, many years – and I’m in their debt forever. I am a rich man indeed – certainly not financially but instead through those around me. Love you all!
Posted on: Mon, 24 Nov 2014 06:37:53 +0000
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