Please take the time.

[PRB]

Just wanted to ask anyone for whom this might pertain to really think about taking the time to teach someone to hunt. Some of you might have the extra time sometime between now and next season to invite and show a friend, neighbor, wife, husband, or whoever how to shoot your crossbow / bow, rifle, maybe for theyre first time.
I didn't take near the time I should have this year to go hunting myself and also taking the time with our oldest of our two boys mainly due to a house project. We'll sure be glad when thats over in a couple of years.
For those of you who have children I can easily understand how you might already have your hands full. I hope the years to come for myself will be filled with those great times hunting with our two boys.
For those of you that might have some extra time with or without children I would like to humbly ask you to consider taking the time with someone else this year to maybe target practice or something related to hunting or fishing. Especially showing those others less unfortunate enough that have never even had a chance to shoot a weapon.
To just the men I say Woman are in my opinion a very positive and strong foothold for the future of hunting. So please consider your next target practice friend or hunting buddy to be your grandma, mother, wife, daughter, or girlfriend. For the first time about a couple of months ago when I was target shooting my Phoenix my wife approached me and said "let me shoot it" Well my heart skipped a beat. You see the wife and I use to go fishing a lot together before we had children and we use to enjoy those times together very very much. So when she asked me to shoot the crossbow then I felt very happy even though I never did act like it at all. I don't want to rush the situation. I hope someday soon we will be able to hunt side by side. I really believe that after our youngest son takes his first deer or two that she'll consider going with me someday. Anyway I was saying that women are great for the sport also because PETA certainly doesn't want to aggravate a bunch of armed women .
Ive been wanting to say these things for a while now and finally made myself take the time to do so.
Im not trying to mislead or force my opinions on anyone but would much rather ask for your help to grow. If you get the extra time to take someone or not is up to you. I have to remind myself sometimes because I get too busy or just so involved in life and work that I forget. Im the worlds worst sometimes for being selfish, and not very sociable when tucked away back here in the sticks of our own little world. But I am learning.
Thanks for taking the time to read this and a special thanks to those of you who have already been doing great things for the good of the sport and our future.

[mikew]

I have two boys and even just with talking about hunting (I haven't hunted much since they were born....they're now 7 1/2 and 5 yrs old) they have expressed an interest.

I have fond memories of hunting with my dad & brother as a youngster and can't wait to share that with them.

Well said and thanks for the post.
-Mike

[Woody Williams]

Good advice.

We need to recruit the young or hunting will die.

Thanks.

[GREYWOLF]

Amen Brother !! I spend at least 4 weeks a year helping bring the art of archery into the relm of kid's age 10 to 14 who have never held a bow or ever dreamed of it . The first 2 hrs are hard , all instruction !!! . and for many of these city kid's , who are more use'd to holding a 9 mm pistol, than a bow . it seams almost impossible to teach basic archery , To some who have realy seen life's hardship's (the gang violence) the time it take's to learn a sport like our's seams worthless on the streat . As they tell me , It dosent get you food !! it dosen't get you any money, dont get you high or laid !! So why waist my time ???
I still teach the course , year after year , WHY ??? because my DAD taught me , mabey in a time when people understand that super weapon's are the norm ! ! The ART of being able to hit your target at close range , and see your arrow pierce your target , and see the life go out of there eye's . That is WAR !! close up !! not life in a neighborhood of famil;y's , friend's !! .
Sorry This is a real problem for me . back in the 70's a guy on my football team was shot 3 times in the face in BOSTON by a 16 y/o with a stolen 357 mag. over a cab ride !!! I have never forgot the look on his Mothers face . when we laid him under back in WORCHESTER ,
I try any way I can to bring the outdoor sports to the inner city kid's , they to dersive a chance to get free of the gang life style and crap that goes hand and hand with it !! I call it my JACKSON project in memory of my old team mate from so long ago.
Sorry for the disertation , It's been 19 years as of tonight since Reggie was killed , it still seams like yesterday , Dont condem the system , unless you are willing to help try to change it , ,the youth are our future
no matter how bad they look. GREYWOLF

[PRB]

Thanks for your help and all the replies.
Wow GREYWOLF that is some story. My hat is off to you for your strength in patience. You turned something negative to a positive

[Mr. Dynamite]

PRB--i agree
i am starting into hunting by myself, and it does make it much harder.
kids are interested if you take the time to tell them about deer or other wildlife, and its neat to see them get a kick out of holding and looking at antlers ect.

[GREY OWL]

That's a very good post PRB. I also have two boys, (see my last post), which have a deep desire to hunt. We are very blessed here in Saskatchewan hunting land is very cheap as compared to other parts of the world. My wife and I are not rich in any sense of the imagination, but we were able to purchase enough property to do all of our hunting, snowmobling, quading, camping, etc. ect., without having to be bothered by anybody on public land, the kids have really taken to it. We have brought out some of the friends my kids go to school with, and its so nice to see these kids playing in the bush, around ponds, down trails, doing things like, capturing frogs, snails, finding shed antlers, building forts, canoeing, plinking with a .22, and the list goes on and on. When the kids are tired of that we go for a extensive all-terrain ride out to our other ponds. There we watch beavers going about their usual routine, all kinds of ducks and geese, sometimes with their little ones. Our land is very hilly, from these hill tops close to dusk, deer start parading out in the alfalfa fields to feed their bellies for the up and coming winter. On these precious weekends, I get off my soap box briefly and become a kid again much like them. The days are long, puckering out our lungs enjoying nature. After all that, thinking of being horizontal between two sheets enters my mind, but not before sitting down to a tin- foil dinner, consisting of vension hamburger, onions, carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, drowning in butter, over a huge homemade fit-pit, top off with smores, (roasted marshmellows between chocolate covered digestive cookies), mmm-mmm gooood.

The most rewarding part is for just a brief couple of days, not seeing the kids play their electronic world of games, computer, X-box, game-boy, game cube, Mp-3's, I-pods............................. you get the drift. All kids need to see both sides of life, the city and the country, they develope into much better kids and adults, being much more rounded and focused. Ice fishing is next on my list, if I can only get off the FORUM, HEHEHE

Grey Owl

P.S. Greywolf good on you for taking the time to teach other kids, other than our own, I'm sure God's reserved a seat for you in heaven.

[The Butcher]

Now there's a straight flying Idea. I try and take some friends kids out every summer ground hog hunting. It is a passion of mine, and will theach patients, trigger congrol, and sportsman ship. I make them take turns. I have my own daughter, I going to try and whip into crossbow shape, so we can hunt next fall. I have already got permission to hunt a 260 acre plot, and would be happy if she could just nail a doe. Give something back to the sport. I know it has given me plenty of memories, friendships, and yes, even a few moments of head shaking. Great advice. Butcher

[PRB]

These are excellent stories. I hope it inspires someone else too.