Hunting has taught me many of the lessons mentioned above some.very pointed examples that I have to agree with:
1. The woods (outdoors) is my cathedral- you would think that sitting for hours in a stand or on a bucket ice fishing and being alone with your thoughts would drive a person crazy- for me it is the ultimate 'centering time' re-center on all that is right and good.
2. Poor prep equals poor performance- pretty much says it all.
Plus a couple other lessons:
1. Being decisive- before you step foot into the woods, decide what you are going to harvest (min size / quality) and when that opportunity presents, seize the opportunity. Then celebrate the success, be it a plump squirrel, or a 350 inch bull elk. We have also learned as a buddy group to make it known to our forces and hunting parnters what we are after before we go.in the woods. Then we celebrate each other's opportunities that were seized!
2. 80% of hunting, as in life is showing up. You gotta be there, whether it is for yourself or for someone else. It's hard to put on the effort some days, but it almost always means the most when you do.
3. Not sure how to summarize it, but I've learned.over the years that the minute you step.in the woods you are essentially hunting, amd the animals don't follow any sort of script. I've had deer walk right in on me when I was climbing up a tree, or getting settled in. I've fallen asleep in the stand and found out various ways that I slept through my opportunity. I've also waited to chber a round when I first get in the stand, and then when Mr. Big walks in, youve got all that noise amd fumbling around has to happen instead of jist safety off and bang..You have to be prepared from the minute you step foor in the woods. Your chance may come when you least expect it, amd without any warning. Success often depends on your readiness and decisiveness in that moment.
4. Lastly, if you spend the extra effort bringing yourself back to civilization instead of 'bringing the outdoor experience into the home', your significant other may appreciate your hunting habit more. Examples:
*Bring the animal home in a cooler, not a bloody mess in the bed of your truck.
*Be sure the last thing you do before leaving camp is a shower and a shave.
*. Butcher somewhere other than the kitchen counter.
*. Make extra effort for the field harvested meats to be prepared in an extraordinary fashion, even though backstraps fried in a pan, and eaten with just your bare fingers is awesome, this is a little too 'caveman' for some.
These are not rules, just suggestions and things I've learned about our household dynamic.
I could go on all day about the things hunting and the preparation therefore have taught me, this is just a sampling.
