I enjoy being a dad, anyone that has known me for very long can tell you that. At times it is a struggle to keep things in perspective, a balance between what is important and those, in the grand scheme of things, that are not. But regardless even on the toughest days, I love being with my family.
To my dad and I, spring was always special. We loved being outside together, listening, calling, scouting. I know that many of you have had the same times with someone like this, and you hold these memories close.
I was 5 years old when my daddy first took me turkey hunting. Holding his rough hand as we walked down the abandoned logging road that bordered the old beaver pond. That moment was and is so vivid and special I have relived it in my mind thousands of times since.
This year marks the 7th season without my dad's presence in my life. I don't know why but every year seems harder as this stream of life carries me further and further away from "what used to be". It's tough because it's like moving on and leaving him alone in abandonment. In my mind's eye I look over my shoulder and see him standing there, an arm stretched waving goodbye and the vision of him fainter as the past grows dark. I raise my hand in return only to realize he has faded away, gone. The roar of time deafening my ears.
My son, who recently turned 5, asked me if he could go listening with me this past Saturday. This would be his second time to go. His first was last year and it was laden with frustration on my part because of the constant chatter from the back seat. This distraction was a combination of laughter and bickering between he and his sister in the truck. I could not hear anything and my anger got the best of me once again. "Ya'll be quiet, I can't hear a dang thing!" There was only a short breath of silence to take in the vain threat, before the tumult would begin again. So on this most recent request I was not expecting much, other than a quick trip to the woods with multiple stillness shattering demands to go home before deathly cold and hunger over took him. But none the less into the darkness we charged.
We arrived at our spot the next morning in the misty swamp. Prior to getting out of the truck I reminded everyone (including myself) that there would be no talking. We were to get out of the vehicle, proceed out through the wood, minding not to talk nor trying to break the Guinness world record for number of sticks broken in a 100 yard distance. "Yes sir!" he said and snapped a quick salute to his forehead.
We exited the vehicle and began our trek down the moonlit path. As we walked I felt him take my hand and wrap his fingers around mine. They had been cooled by the morning air and together clasped we warmed each others. Over logs and around water we slipped with efforts so quiet and sleek we would make a lion's stalk proud.
After a short walk, we were there, both standing at the listening spot that I had stood countless times before, alone, long before I could even imagine fatherhood, now I stood with my son side by side as my dad and I had once been. In the breaking of the new day, motionless, our ears strained to hear a faint gobble over distant owls perched in lonely oaks, when gently the little hand at my side tugged and whispered ever so softly in the inky light... "daddy this is awesome!"
Time is such a special commodity that should not be wasted. Spend it wisely. Hold on to every moment. Pass it on.
God bless and good luck to everyone this season.
May your moments be rich and everlasting.
Those are the good times!
That's the good stuff
Thanks for sharing and helping to keep things in perspective. My dad didn't hunt and i didn't start until a friends dad took me in my late teens. I now have a 3 year old grandson and can't wait to start making memories with him in the turkey woods.
I don't have a child, but that is awesome! I can only imagine how that must feel.
If I can call in a nice tom with a call I made for my daughter, that would be the cherry on top of a great life. That is a moment you will never forget brother
Awesome read. I cherish every moment my boy and I get to hunt together also
To me, that is a very cherished moment. Enjoy them, they grow up real fast. A morning like that rivals any morning I've been alone and bagged a gobbler.
:z-winnersmiley:
I can remember taking my daughter with me. She was 7 at the time and the giant hill that we needed to climb was hard for her and she needed a helping hand from dad. It was a wet morning and it took a while to get our target fired up. Eventually I get the gobbler coming when the announcement is made "Dad , I have to go potty." Well we drop rack over the ridge to tend to the problem at hand then I figure we'll give that Turkey a little movement to the call. We move about 80 yards down the line and set up in front of another big oak. One call and the gobbler answers EXACTLY from out previous calling position. We ended up carrying that guy out of there which is nothing less than a miracle. That 7 year old is now a pediatric anesthetiologist. A cherished memory for sure.
GREAT POST! We Definitely need reminding of the important stuff every so often!
Tried to get my little man to join me Saturday to listen but his response was " You find them Daddy and I'll shoot them" LOL
I did let him sleep in Saturday but we had a nice chat about it not just being about the kill and used the opportunity to have a nice discussion about what chasing turkeys means to me and the scouting and footwork is what makes the kills rewarding.
Those are certainly the good times! There's no better time spent than with a child or grand child. It's hard to not get frustrated at them when they're arguing with a sibling or makes noises that irritate us but they grow up so fast, and then the opportunity is gone. I've got a 2.5 year old grandson that's going to be a handful but I can't wait for the good times ahead with him. He already loves checking the game cameras and "helping" me trap coyotes.
That is such a great read. My Dad didn't hunt so my grandpa took me. Hunting with grandpa was not like your experience with your dad. We went our separate ways when we got out of the truck but it was still a great time. Since then I became a father and have got to take my son. Helped him kill his first deer with a gun and a bow and also his first turkey. He's now 20 and wants to do it all on his own. I hunt by myself as it seems like I have more memories hunting alone than I do with my son or my grandpa. There's an occasional hunt with a friend but most of the time by myself.
That brought back some good memories and reminded me of James 4:14. Thanks, I needed that.
Great post. I've taken my son and and occasionally my daughter hunting since they could walk. They're now 26 and 24. I've spent a lot of time in my life hunting and by far the best memories are taking them. Some of the best were times when shots were missed or other screw ups with my son. We laugh about them often. I could tell stories for hours....
Awesome read! I'm the daddy of 3 little boys myself. Ages 5.5, 4, and 10 months. I can't wait to start getting them out in the woods and sharing lifelong memories with them. I don't know how in the world i'm going to take all of them when they're all old enough to go, but i'm ready to try it. I'm sure i'll figure something out. Thanks for the read.
Quote from: blake_08 on March 05, 2018, 03:48:00 PM
Awesome read! I'm the daddy of 3 little boys myself. Ages 5.5, 4, and 10 months. I can't wait to start getting them out in the woods and sharing lifelong memories with them. I don't know how in the world i'm going to take all of them when they're all old enough to go, but i'm ready to try it. I'm sure i'll figure something out. Thanks for the read.
ha! and I thought I had my hands full! Good times are definitely headed your way! :z-guntootsmiley:
Thank you for sharing!
I have two daughters (5 & 7 years old). And both go hunting (dove and duck) with me and have been going since they were 3 years old. My oldest has been turkey hunting, and my youngest will go this season...
When I take the kids hunting, I try to make it all about the kids... Taking the quad for a spin, catching frogs (in the spring), looking for feathers, etc... No extended hunts with extended periods of no movement.
My youngest is asking to go this season, and I will oblige... Both girls can run a box call, and we will be practicing nightly (after the homework is done).
When I take the kids I try to give them an "important job" to keep them engaged... And I give them something to look forward to after the hunt (a quad ride, catching forgs, Mickey Mouse pancakes, etc.).
And don't forget the binoculars...
That was good bugster. I have three of my own and I love taking them. I have seen the bigger picture I guess. Don't get me wrong, when hunting alone or with adult friends I am still dead serious. But I have learned with kids to lighten up. We are there to have fun first and foremost. I know for me and pedro half the fun is the process. The morning drive and the little details that make our time together special. At fourteen he is starting to want to branch out on his own a little and it's only natural. I have another "shadow" that is chomping at that bit to hit the woods this fall. We are going to have some fun in the next 5-10 years. I may not pull the trigger as often but honestly it doesn't bother me at all. I love watching my boys get excited when that moment comes. I would include my daughter but she just flat out kills stuff with no emotion until afterward. When it's all said and done I want my kids to have some great memories and appreciate what we have outdoors. I didn't get that as a kid but I am determined to make that better for my children, and my "shadow".
Good one bugman, got me teary-eyed, I can picture it vividly.
Being my dad has now been gone 24 yrs, I can relate to those feelings of holding on to memories as they fad and he becomes almost a dream instead of someone who molded for me for 11 yrs. Then the Lord reminds me that I'm His son and that He's been molding me since I was 9yrs old and will continue the sanctification process until the days He custom numbered for me are complete...
Quote from: bamahunter on March 06, 2018, 09:02:00 AM
Good one bugman, got me teary-eyed, I can picture it vividly.
Being my dad has now been gone 24 yrs, I can relate to those feelings of holding on to memories as they fad and he becomes almost a dream instead of someone who molded for me for 11 yrs. Then the Lord reminds me that I'm His son and that He's been molding me since I was 9yrs old and will continue the sanctification process until the days He custom numbered for me are complete...
Amen brother! :mycross:
I have a 9 yr old boy who knows it all, sarcasm of course, and a soon to be 5 yr old little girl who has her Daddy's heart in the palms of her hands. Yep, I know the struggle all too well and can appreciate a post like this. It certainly was a needed reminder for me. Thanks for the post Bugman!
In 2001, I carried my dad's last Missouri gobbler out of the woods, tears rolling down my face. I knew something was wrong, and as it turned out, his cancer had returned. He passed on March 14th, 2002. When my brother, my friend and I returned to Missouri a month later, the first thing we noticed was that we didn't hear dad dragging firewood down the camp road. That was his job-he was the fire maker. The next morning I went to his favorite ridge, and it was like he'd arranged for that gobbler to be there. I killed it in about five minutes after fly down. It was a moment that is as fresh today as it was then.
Great read Bugman......My hunts with my Father and now my Son are my most cherished...Once my Father got old before he passed he truly enjoyed my success and always wanted to see what I had shot or gave words of encouragement.
Looking back at pictures I ask myself where have the years gone. My Son first started hunting at around 5yrs old just sitting with me at first and now he's almost 14 and now a young man.
I use to be all business and a lot more serious when hunting. After these years of hunting with my Son he's actually taught me to lighten up and have fun. I make it more his hunt than mine.
I remember a couple seasons ago after sitting for quite some time he asked if we could go and I replied just give it TEN more minutes and we'll go. I got the disgusted look and shoulder drop. When he was walking out with a 25lb bird with over a ten inch beard he Thanked me. My response was sometimes Patience pays..Later that same season after sitting awhile I told him lets go we'll try again tomorrow. He then asked me to sit longer.. I know more than smiled and within five minutes another big Tom was being carried out. His response was remember what you told me Father...Sometimes patience pays ...Ahh the memories..
I love reading all these stories, But my allergies must be kicking in cause my eyes keep tearing up....