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| Glory and Wonder |
As I sit
in my treestand, 20 feet above the ground in a mature maple, I am in awe of the
beauty around me. The light filters through the gold and red canopy above me
spilling onto the musky forest floor. It feels like I am in a cathedral. I am sitting
here practicing being still and mindful only of my surroundings, but I am
overcome with gratitude and wonder.
I begin to think ancient thoughts. Thoughts
about how mankind has connected to nature and how in the beginning man learned
everything he needed to know from animals. He learned to make calls imitating
birds, and studied the movements and patterns of four leggeds. He learned to
hunt by watching larger carnivorous animals. And ultimately, he learned that he
needed them to survive.
This
need translated to a closer connection. In order to eat, he had to understand
the animals or plants that he could use to nurture himself, and often times
learned from experience which organisms could make him sick or kill him, either
with tooth and fang, or simply through his stomach.
I
hypothesize that primitive man was in some way “grateful” for his successful
hunt, although he probably didn’t sit around and pray about it. He just felt
it. Food is good. I need food to survive. Therefore I need animals and plants
so they become important to me. I rely on them.
As I am pondering
these possibilities I drift into my own analysis of why I hunt now, when it
would be so much easier to go to the grocery store and purchase the vegetables
and meat I need. But do I feel any connection to this food? Am I grateful for
it? I may be grateful that I have enough money for the purchase, but am I
grateful for the animal or plant? Have I studied its habitat and patterns? Do I
honor and respect its life?
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| Why Do I Hunt? |
When I
hunt, I feel love. Love for the woods. Love for the breeze. Love for the sunset
and the trees. Love for the sound of the geese flying high overhead. Love for
the animal I am seeking.
I am
filled with an appreciation of all that surrounds me and for who I am as a part
of it. I am both insignificant and valuable at the same time. My value is no
greater than and no lesser than the animals, the plants and the sun that warms
my face. I am at one with my universe. It is then that the universe rewards me
with what I need.
A doe
steps into the open space beneath my stand. She looks over her shoulder with a
maternal glance. Following her is a smallish fawn, no doubt delivered late in
the spring. The fawn follows its mother directly under my tree. I watch in
utter amazement as they work their way past my ladder. I am invisible.
They
sense no threat from me and thus their sixth sense accepts my presence as
something natural.
They wander off behind my stand and I say a prayer of thanks
to the Great Spirit for their visit.
At the
edge of the field that abuts the woods, a gray squirrel squeals loudly at
something I cannot see.
A twig snaps. My heart races.
I
practice breathing like I had never done it before. In through the nose. Out
through the mouth. Conscious of every breath. Through the tangles that envelop
the ditch leading to the field, I catch a glimpse of motion.
Brown
motion.
Then suddenly a stomp and a loud blowing sound. The wind has switched
direction and this animal, this deer, smells something that is unfamiliar in
these woods. Behind an old oak, I see a head lift and the sun glints off of a
set of gorgeous antlers.
Another
stomp and blow. The buck is looking right at my tree. He is out of range for my
bow.
He lifts
his head up into the pillar of light and scans up the tree until our eyes are
locked on one another.
I wait. Measured
breathing, Not blinking. We are joined in a primitive moment.
I can
see his chest expanding and contracting with mine.
Suddenly,
his tail swishes form side to side. He turns his head to the West and begins to
slowly walk away from me toward the field.
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| Gratitude |
The sun
sets and the birds get quiet. I sit down in my seat and take a deep breath. I
say out loud “Thank you Great Spirit for my brother’s visit.” I have received a
gift of beauty and wonder this evening that will remain as a memory for the
rest of my life.
And I am grateful.
