So it has been brought to my attention that apparently what I choose to do in my life has been boiled down to pure sport and all for fun. Since not everyone will know what this is in reference too, I will elaborate. I was un-friended by a coworker because I hunt. Not just hunt but also post pictures of what I shoot on my Facebook page. Today, that individual choose to post on their Facebook that he/she can not understand the reason for hunting and then posing with said animal. It went further to complain about woman and the raise in popularity of females taking up the sport. Normally, I would not allow myself to make any sort of response to such a post. I simply dont care what other people think about what I choose to do in life or my reasoning behind it. I still dont care what others think, but I felt it was time I made some sort of response. Trying to explain why I do what I do to someone that has never walked a day in my life is nearly impossible. There is no way I can explain the emotions that come along with decisions I make to do what I do. The decision to hunt and take an animals life is one that needs to be addressed by each person as an individual. Each has to come to terms with the gravity of what pulling the triggering or releasing an arrow means. I wont be able to describe that feeling, unless you do it...I dont have words that can adequately describe the mix of emotions that fill me. I wont defend everyone that has picked up a gun or a bow...I dont know why or what they feel, I wont pretend to know. I wont even pretend to think that everyone that does hunt, does it with respect to other hunters, non-hunters, and the game they pursue. I know better. I grew up in household and a way of life that involved the outdoors. I hunted. It was, besides sports, what connected my father and I. He has long since passed, but there isnt a day that goes by that I step in the fields or woods and dont feel his presence with me. It is, and always will be, where I feel he is still with me. He taught me what he knew about woodsmanship, patience, and respect for nature. Hunting, done properly, is the ultimate respect for what god has put on this earth. Trying to explain that hunting is so much more than the half second it takes to pull a trigger or release an arrow often falls on deaf ears. I take what I do seriously. You miss the months and years of preparation and hard work it takes to be proficient to shoot, to get your body ready for what nature challenges you with. I fail far more than I succeed at killing something, yet I still desire to be outdoors. When I am lucky enough to harvest something, mixed emotions of regret...elation...sadness...and joy fill my soul. I am thankful above anything else. Thankful for the animal and the opportunity to do what is in my spirit to do.
Posted on: Sat, 19 Oct 2013 01:53:24 +0000
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