Is it Hunting Season Yet?
Yes, it is, but sadly I haven’t been able to do much hunting yet. Well, I take that back. We went to Christian County, Kentucky over Labor Day weekend and hunted for three days straight, but all I have to show for it are a few pictures of a spotted fawn from the stand. None of us even saw a buck worth shooting. The “outfitter” was a joke. It was more like you paid him $800 for the privilege of sharing hunting camp with him and his buddies. We were told we could expect to see 18-20 deer per day. I didn’t see 20 the entire time I was there. We had mice in our bedroom (caught three of the little vermin in traps), and one even tried to make a meal out of Michael’s thumb while he was sleeping. Oh well, lesson learned. We need to do more research before we buy another hunt at the RMEF auction.
While I haven’t been hunting much, I have been training hard for the Atlanta Half Marathon on Thanksgiving Day. I’m running 20 miles per week now, and I’ve even made it to they gym for all of my workouts for the past two weeks. Getting up at 5 AM to go run is tough, but until this heat breaks, that’s the only time I can run without suffering from heat exhaustion. Ever gotten chills while running when it’s 95 degrees? Yeah, it’s not a good feeling.
The running is coming along nicely though. This morning I ran 7 miles in just a little over an hour. My goal is to do the Atlanta half in less than two hours. I’m currently managing about a 10 minute/mile pace on my longer runs, and I’ve got to get that down to 9:06/mile by November.
Whether I’m running or hunting, I really enjoy being outside as the dawn begins to break and the world comes alive. It’s always so quiet and peaceful just before the sun comes up over the horizon. It’s a wonder
ful opportunity to see a “mini version” of God’s Creation. First the light, and as the light begins to grow, you can see the sky before you can see the ground. Then a few minutes later the ground comes into view, and before long you can make out individual trees and other
plants. The sun finally peeks over the horizon, bathing everything in its warm (or at this time of year, hot) glow. Not long after that the woods come alive with the sounds of birds chirping and flitting from branch to branch. The leaves rustle as squirrels begin to search for food, and then your heart skips a beat when you hear the unmistakable heavier footfalls of the deer moving through the forest. With any luck, the deer will come into archery range, and as I draw my bow I’m reminded that God made us stewards of all the earth, and that he gave us bountiful game for food, and with a silent prayer, the arrow is on its way.
