Today is the second day of the Oaky Woods hunt. It’s too warm, not wet enough, and too
quiet. There are only about one hundred
hunters signed in right now, with two deer harvested so far. I know that a hundred people on a three day
hunt sounds like a lot, but with so many acres…it’s pretty empty. That would be good, ordinarily, because that’s
so many deer per hunter, but with 60degree mornings, it’s way too warm for the
deer to be feeling frisky and on the move.
There are so many things I am learning about hunting just be
sponging up all the conversations between the DNR guys, hunters, loggers, and
law enforcement officers. It is such an
interesting experience for a girl that has never learned about how to look for
sign, or take advantage of deer habits during different weather patterns, or
avoid crowded hot spots.
I love it. I love how
much these men know about the land they care for, how much they understand the
animals and ecosystem. It is days like
this that I understand why Leopold captured my heart so with his writings. His practical knowledge, his passion, his
humble, day-to-day understanding of the natural world in which he lives is a
gift. Not many people understand their
surroundings quite so much like those that work in them all the time, and not
many people will stop and listen through the thick accents and the rough
exteriors to see the huge hearts in these men.
Admittedly, for most of my life I wouldn’t have listened
either. However, now, I do. I hear their consciences so clearly through
their words about regulations, safety, scrapes, slues, bottoms, hard mast, and
firebreaks. I hear how much this land
means to them, and I hear how much they have sacrificed to keep it beautiful. Honestly, the jobs these men have are not the
most financially rewarding. They just
aren’t. Having a family on this salary
can be tough, unless you’re smart. But I
see these men do it every day. I see
them work the long hours, deal with thankless hunters, put miles and miles of
mud on their trucks…all because of their love for the land.
How noble a profession.
I mean it. It might
sound strange, especially when you look at the weathered, tan-and-green,
gun-toting tough guys, but it’s the truth.
I cannot express to my satisfaction the joy I have in my heart because I
have had the chance to get to know these men working in bear country.
You know, Hooker jokes sometimes about this
being God’s country, but for me, right now, His presence is so clear, that
without a doubt…this is indeed God’s country, and I am thankful to be in it.
