Hunting and What It Means To Me
Hunting and What It Means to Me
Hunting, by definition, is the activity of hunting wild animals or game, especially for food or sport. Although this is the basic definition, everyone’s take on this may be a little different. To me, hunting is in the blood. I have been brought up in Northeastern Pennsylvania and was raised hunting and fishing since I was a young boy. Hunting is second nature. Everything about hunting excites me. The preparation, the chase, and then finally, the trophy. Hunting as taught me many valuable life lessons. Hunting is not for everyone, rightfully so, but I believe hunting has helped mold me into the person I am today.
Ever since I was a young boy, I was with my grandfather or father out and about in the woods. They trained me from a young age what to look for and how to act in the woods. It must not have been easy being a young kid always wanting to run around, but I still remember the lessons they taught me. I learned how to follow trails and how-to call-in animals. I learned how to respect the woods and everything in its beauty. To me, hunting can teach you a lot of valuable lessons. The first and most important thing I was taught was to respect the weapon that I held. In this day and age, I wish more people learned this lesson. I understood at a young age the power that a gun or bow had. I knew there were consequences when you pulled that trigger. The biggest thing I learned was once you pulled that trigger, you can’t take it back. These types of lessons have prepared me not only for hunting, but real-life situations. This is all in the preparation of hunting. You must learn what it truly means to hunt and not just kill.
As I grew older and understood hunting more, I realized it wasn’t just the preparation I loved, it was the chase. The chase to me is the best part of the hunt. I love everything about trying to set up and outsmart whatever animal it is I am hunting that day. I guess I would say the best part to me is the unknown. Not knowing what will walk out of those woods to you at any moment is truly surreal (especially if it is a 300lb black bear). This to me is what makes hunting worth it. The feeling that overtakes you when you see that big buck come down the trail is just unexplainable. I try to tell my non-hunting friends, but they don’t seem to understand it. I believe that hunting is in the blood. Either you have it in you, or you don’t. Now this doesn’t mean that you can pick up down the road in life as a hobby, but I am talking about being a die-hard hunter who can’t wait for that season to roll around. That right there is in the blood.
Talking about blood, hunting brings together family. This here is one thing that I truly love about hunting. Every year, I get to spend time with my family to go out and hunt together. No matter how far away, we always get pulled in together for hunting season. Although some family isn’t there to hunt with us anymore RIP grandpa, I know they are in the woods with me each and every time I am out there. This is why hunting is so amazing and one of the biggest reasons I hunt. I hunt to be with family and share those special moments together when bagging a big one. Always know that your family will be there for you and when I am hunting, I truly feel that.
As you can tell, hunting to me is a completely different definition than the one that is listed. I hunt for life lessons, family, food, and that quiet time to myself in the woods where I do my thinking. If anyone ever tells you hunting is stupid or unnecessary, just smile and walk away. Some people will never understand the reasons that we emerge ourselves…….IN THE HUNT.
