Hunting and Life Lessons

Last month we went camping and hunting in the middle of nowhere..literally. It's dry camping, no electricity, no showers, no campfires, major water conservation, dirt roads, camo painted outhouse, cow pies everywhere, no cell service unless you make it to the very top of the hill kinda camping. When we pulled into camp it was midnight, pitch black and freezing. I'm trying to keep the kids quiet and huddled into the trailer so we don't wake up the other campers, get the heater on and kids in bed and I see poop on the trailer floor! I was beyond tired but I blew a lid. "Who stepped in poop???" They all shrug and look around. Josh is trying to keep me quiet now and I snap at him "I don't care who hears me, there's poop!" Oh how lovely of me, I can laugh now but I wasn't laughing then. Especially when I realized it was me who had stepped in a large cow pie in the pitch black of night. Funny huh. But when you go to a place like this (after you get some sleep, and some asking of forgiveness, and a nice cup of coffee in the morning) you become detached from your little world, your little issues and your social media maintenance and find yourself feeling so small in the glory of God's creation. It's so quiet, secluded, and just beautiful. And the fall leaves just put it over the top.

Hunting and camping alone can be hard. Hunting with kids, is a whole 'nother level. I definitely have had to shift my thinking to remember they are just kids. I have a git'r done mentality, I have to have a plan and it shall be successful because I did 1. 2. and 3. But God says nope. This is the season you are in..my boys are only this age for so long. They won't be little forever, hunting will look different in a couple years even. But if I keep low expectations and just enjoy being out in the wild, making memories and new discoveries about God, nature and ourselves, it usually turns out to be a great experience.

Hunting has been a challenge for us. We choose to hunt private properties through a hunting organization for the sake of being able to safely hunt with our boys and not worrying about areas being too crowded with the crazies. So we are still learning the areas we hunt.These properties are really large and unfamiliar to us. We also have had to learn what signs to look for for the animal we are hunting. I have to admit I became a bit frustrated that we didn't take any game this trip. It's such hard work. And with kids..they're loud and and can't sit still long, and are hungry, and have to pee, and they're loud. It's taking time but they will one day become quiet stealthy trackers! They are learning so much about nature, about stopping to take a longer look at things to see if there's anything to find..a clue, a track, scat..anything. They are experiencing different life lessons out there too, by seeing with their own eyes the natural order of things. There are many carcasses of deceased animals they get to take a look at. We talk about possible causes of death. We talk about the way they were created, what sort of built in protection they were made with, what they're good at, if they're a predator or prey. Then there's the adventure they jump into themselves. Getting hands on, being wild, being free. Taking on steep hillsides just to climb to the top and say they conquered the giant mountain! They took their hiking sticks they made and found ways to traverse this insane hill..I could've sworn I was going to have to rescue one of my boys. But glad to say I was wrong, and was proud to see my boys challenge themselves, especially the ones it doesn't come easy for. They built forts, climbed trees, explored, made up games with what they had. These great life experiences my boys are able to live out are what it's all about. It's what makes the trip a success in my book.

One day we were out driving around and to the right of us we saw this huge bird take off into flight. I didn't know for sure what it was at first never seeing one before- but from our nature guides and books on birds we quickly figured it was a golden eagle. It was about thirty feet away gliding right along next to us and then flew right across the road in front of us and took off over the hillside to join a couple others. It was the coolest thing to get such a good view of this eagle in it's natural environment.

We were able to see a few deer on the property. And got to witness another campers experience with some raccoon one night! We also saw many of the deer that the other hunters got. There was one morning Josh was out hunting, and we were just about to start school in the trailer. A hunter pulls into camp with his buck ready to skin and quarter it, right in front of us. We put our books away so fast, jumping at the chance to experience this in real life! The boys were so involved and interested in every part of it, asking questions, pointing and touching the different parts of the deer. Learning quickly that deer have ticks and to see what they look like and know the dangers of them. Seeing the hooves and making the connection with their memory of seeing deer tracks on the trails. While talking to the hunter I was able to help hand him the knives he needed, and before you know it, he offered to let me help him skin the deer! Prior to this I thought the whole deer skinning would be something that I just couldn't stomach. Josh has brought home game birds before and I could barely handle seeing the insides of that..but I've always tried to keep a brave face for the boys. I thought surely a larger game would be too much. But I was surprised, I didn't even lose my breakfast! It was pretty awesome that I was getting the chance to learn how to do this for the day we get our own deer. It was the coolest lesson by far, not just on deer anatomy..but a life lesson in how we view wildlife, how we respect and honor it. When we talk about hunting with the boys, we are teaching them that for us it's about providing meat for our family. We don't ever take a shot unless we know for sure it will be a clean shot with minimal suffering for the animal, or we don't take it. We talk about using as much of the animal as we can. They get to learn about the life cycle and about the order and balance of it. About hunting laws, why we have to wait for a buck to have forked antlers, so we know he's old enough to be hunted. This kind of "school" is the best kind. And you don't have to homeschool for your kids to have an awesome learning experience..you just take the things you are experiencing in your life as an opportunity (to learn what you can yourself) and teach them valuable life lessons.

One evening the patrolman brought over the tail from a hog that was hunted a few days before and gave it to Mitchell. The man didn't know but Mitchell is probably the only child of mine who would be ecstatic over any animal part. Sometimes it makes my stomach turn but I just have to let Mitchell be Mitchell. So the man gives him the tail and the boy is happy as can be swinging it around- and the thing stinks because it's about a week old already! But with the tail comes the story of how he got a hold of it. And the guy was a storyteller! Mitchell was so fascinated by it all, having a full on conversation with this man about the hog that was hunted and the bear that tried to take it for his own. It made my day. It reminded me how important older generations are- to Josh and I, to our children, and to our future generations. There is SO much to learn from the people who have gone before us. It reminded me of a quote I read:

"Education is simply the soul of a society as it passes from one generation to another." Gilbert K. Chesterton

There was one couple in particular we met during our trip who were in their late 70's. We grew so fond of them. Each day we would find ourselves looking to see if they were outside so we can visit. It was even more fun to hear the boys talking about them and re-tell their stories. I'm finding I really love older couples. I love their stories, their personalities and the way they can just enjoy the moments. They always seem like they have all the time in the world. The gentleman was a marine when he was a young man, already a fondness there because my Daddy served too. He wore a cowboy hat, and when he introduced himself he took it off and shook my hand, just like the cowboys in the movies. (I have to say I've never experienced that before, it felt so chivalrous. I'm sure it's a more common thing in areas that have more ranchers or cowboys..but I think California needs more of this!) His wife was such a sweet and lovely woman. So kind, gentle and with a sense of humor. We had the chance to listen to their love story, their life story, cherished moments, hard years, surviving cancer and still trusting God with their purpose, while getting a small idea of the legacy they are leaving for their children and grandchildren. I tear up thinking about it. As Josh and I get older and gain more years together, I've realized that that is the sort of life we want to live- and leave. They have Christ as their center, they've served Him and many others. They've helped provide opportunities for their children and grandchildren's future because of their submission to God's plan for their life. I don't think they know the impact they've made on my heart just from sharing their life with us. It made me think a little more about something we heard at church recently- "If the dream you have can be completed in your lifetime it isn't big enough!" It means we need to be thinking and dreaming generationally. Our lifetime is so brief, if you want to make a lasting difference, listen to that idea, that dream nudging deep inside your heart- you know that one that might seem a little crazy or scary or out of your league, too big for you- the one that will continue to impact those to follow us! It gave me so much hope for our family. For the dreams we are dreaming that seem much greater than us. The dreams that feel like they're so far off or are taking too long. God's word says "Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin" {Zechariah 4:10} We are in our small beginnings. We are seeing God's hand. It's slow, but it's happening. So I'm rejoicing in it. I'm choosing to live our dreams in small steps, gaining all the knowledge and experiences we can where we're at right now. Being disciplined in the small things. So one day we can handle greater.

 {I have to add that our neighbor went on a deer hunt days after we returned from ours and guess what- he got a deer! I was seriously thinking what is the deal?? I felt like everyone around us was having their success except us! Well, our super nice and pretty neighbor gave us some of his venison. And I was pretty humbled. After helping the other hunters with their deer while we were on our hunt and being excited for them, and showing the boys that we can be happy for other people's success and have good attitudes about it...I was a bit discouraged but I told Josh that God is going to honor us..I didn't know how..but knew He would. And He did, He totally blessed us! So guess what we did, we bought a pressure canner and learned how to can venison, and gave some back to our neighbor. A complete win-win because we got some venison in the freezer and preserving food is something I've been wanting to learn how to do!}