The hunting season is like another holiday at our house. As the season approaches, the anticipation is almost tangible. Preparation and planning are done way in advance. The deer stands are checked out and hunting licenses are purchased. I make and freeze chocolate chip cookies and gingersnaps, a tradition. I must make sure I have sunflower seeds in the shell and hot chocolate mix on hand.
Taking care of as much fall plowing as my husband can, cleaning out the heifer barn, making a couple more trips to make wood, making sure drinking cups in the barn are in good working order — all of the fall work is met with urgency.
My husband readily tells the women here how many days he has to wait with phrases like, “By this time next week I’ll be out sitting in my stand!” or “Are you reading for The Hunt?” It’s like a vacation for him, sandwiched in between chores, that is. I cannot imagine how much more he’ll enjoy hunting when he’s not tuckered out first from taking care of the cows.
We get up extra early during hunting season, getting done with milking and feeding before the first light of dawn. Then everyone heads out to hunt. Some come back around 9 a.m. to take care of letting cows out, scraping up, bedding cows, throwing hay down for next morning feeding, letting cows back in and cleaning the barn. After that, the hunters usually head down to a local tavern for a hamburger lunch and discuss what was seen, what was shot, what was missed. All of that gets talked over. They may go back out in the afternoon, depending on the weather conditions and how they feel. And then chores start all over again.
The Hunt requires stuff. Lots of stuff. Warm hats with a face-mask, heavy jackets, bib coveralls, winter underwear, gloves, hot packs, hot seat, heavy-duty socks and sturdy boots, and, of course, a gun and shells. All of this is required per hunter.
Usually I tag along on the second day of the first part of the season. My stuff requires everything but the gun and shells. I just cannot point and shoot. Understanding that we eat what we harvest justifies it in my mind that my family goes out to hunt, but for me personally, I just cannot do it. I keep in mind we need to control the deer population as they eat what we plant and grow for our cows and heifers.
Chopping corn this year, I could tell how much damage was done by wildlife. There were many cobs stripped clean, bare and hanging on the corn stalk, especially in the outer rows. Our cows pay our bills; the deer do not. So quality hunting to control the number of deer on our land makes sense.
Now when I go out “to hunt” besides being bundled up like an orange marshmallow, I take other stuff along, such as my cell, coffee, a water bottle, cookies, Kleenex, lip balm, pen and paper, and extra hot packs.
Sitting out there for hours always makes me feel a bit antsy. I have patience, but sitting still for long periods (without talking) makes me fidgety and restless. I need to do something. Hunting requires doing nothing but waiting for prolonged stretches at a time. I start thinking about all the things I could be doing in a nice, quiet, empty house.
I’ll go, however. I will enjoy it, I know. I’ve done it every year and every year I’ve appreciated the effort it took in hauling myself out there along with my family. The woods is beautiful, I’m so grateful we have been blessed with care-taking that amazing piece of God’s property. Watching the day wake up, I’ve seen squirrels and chipmunks, foxes and rabbits, turkeys and deer. The wildlife that call it home are fascinating creatures to gaze at unhurriedly. God takes complete care of them.
Ah yes, The Hunt. Wonder how we’ll do this year.
I will probably let you know.
(“These all look to You to give them their food at the proper time. When You give it to them, they gather it up; when You open Your hand, they are satisfied with good things.” Psalm 104:27-28)
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