I am sitting on a plastic bucket, tucked into a hedgerow of sunflowers and goldenrod and bluestem grass, a sliver of the real Great Plains eking out an existence on the edge of a cut wheat field.
The art of sitting is underrated. I enjoyed this piece. Sometimes sitting and waiting for the world to come to you is a necessary part of introspection.
Love all this and as someone who shot a single do e this morning, missing two other not difficult shots, I'm wondering what you do with one dove. I plucked and cleaned it but can't go hunting again until Wednesday at best. So freeze him? Cook one dove? What do you do with one dove?
Tinkerbelle? You'll tell me the dos and don'ts of gun naming sometime. Preferably over a whiskey.
I think a lot of people are terrified of being alone with their thoughts. I know I am sometimes. But putting the phone and the laptop away for a while is wildly helpful. Some of us take a walk, some do their best thinking while doing the dishes or watering plants. And some of us do it while waiting to blast birds out of the sky.
I can't wait to see what you do with your quarry.
M
P.S. I'm really irritated that you're book isn't doing as well as you'd hoped. I happen to think it's fucking marvelous.
I now share this solitude of dove hunting. It used to be such a social event for me but the last few years of hunting in Idaho with few friends nearby, I find myself enjoying the solitude. Letting my mind wander as I watch a dragon fly or some other insect while sitting on a bucket and forgetting to watch my decoys as a group of doves swoop in and as usual when I let my mind wander I am not prepared and don't even get a shot off.
Presently enjoying the solitude of surf fishing the north shores of PEI for a couple weeks and am enjoying it for the same reasons....watching the rods, listening to the ocean, and the smell of salty air....another great read...thanks
I got my one dove last weekend too. It came between long hours of contemplation that I seldom get anywhere else. Thanks for reminding me of how lucky we are to be in nature and just sit still while the rest of the world whistles by. Tickerbelle, huh? Guess I should consider naming my 12 gauge.
As much as I miss hunting the canyons and draws out west, there's a lot to be said for the quiet moments on stand. Nowhere to go, but just as importantly, nowhere to be. I've probably written a dozen novels and twice as many books of essays sitting there waiting... listening... meandering without moving an inch.
Of course, none of them ever hit paper. The thoughts are gone as soon as I stand up to go home.
Love it just back from three days inBeeville Tx shooting white wings really good. Didn’t have a lot of time to just be quiet but the wind was there 20mph for those that have never shot whitewings in that kind of wind. Well you just haven’t lived.
Beautifully described. Personally, my own hunting experience significantly improved after I learned how to practice meditation. Different, I know. Also, as a lifelong avid fly angler, I learned that what I was experiencing was stillness through movement, very similar to the practice of tai chi. So Hank, give fly fishing another chance for experiencing stillness. And BTW, we love your newest book. Thank you.
Although I am not a dove hunter I relish quiet mornings on my deck, looking for deer in my yard searching for the last of my figs on the trees, the occasional possum searching the ground for any fallen figs and various species of birds resting on my garden bean climbing screen soaking in the safety of my yard.
We had a fantastic opener in GA. Everyone got their limit at the field I have been lucky enough to be invited to. That said, it was hot. Probably dangerously hot as myself and a few others couldn’t get our heart rates to slow down.
I love a long sit in a field, deer stand or blind, or while fishing. It’s a great time to slow myself down and reflect.
The art of sitting is underrated. I enjoyed this piece. Sometimes sitting and waiting for the world to come to you is a necessary part of introspection.
Love all this and as someone who shot a single do e this morning, missing two other not difficult shots, I'm wondering what you do with one dove. I plucked and cleaned it but can't go hunting again until Wednesday at best. So freeze him? Cook one dove? What do you do with one dove?
Tinkerbelle? You'll tell me the dos and don'ts of gun naming sometime. Preferably over a whiskey.
I think a lot of people are terrified of being alone with their thoughts. I know I am sometimes. But putting the phone and the laptop away for a while is wildly helpful. Some of us take a walk, some do their best thinking while doing the dishes or watering plants. And some of us do it while waiting to blast birds out of the sky.
I can't wait to see what you do with your quarry.
M
P.S. I'm really irritated that you're book isn't doing as well as you'd hoped. I happen to think it's fucking marvelous.
I now share this solitude of dove hunting. It used to be such a social event for me but the last few years of hunting in Idaho with few friends nearby, I find myself enjoying the solitude. Letting my mind wander as I watch a dragon fly or some other insect while sitting on a bucket and forgetting to watch my decoys as a group of doves swoop in and as usual when I let my mind wander I am not prepared and don't even get a shot off.
Presently enjoying the solitude of surf fishing the north shores of PEI for a couple weeks and am enjoying it for the same reasons....watching the rods, listening to the ocean, and the smell of salty air....another great read...thanks
I got my one dove last weekend too. It came between long hours of contemplation that I seldom get anywhere else. Thanks for reminding me of how lucky we are to be in nature and just sit still while the rest of the world whistles by. Tickerbelle, huh? Guess I should consider naming my 12 gauge.
Writing that speaks to the soul. Thank you for the opportunity to sit quietly with you on that windy day.
Beautiful writing, so visual.
As much as I miss hunting the canyons and draws out west, there's a lot to be said for the quiet moments on stand. Nowhere to go, but just as importantly, nowhere to be. I've probably written a dozen novels and twice as many books of essays sitting there waiting... listening... meandering without moving an inch.
Of course, none of them ever hit paper. The thoughts are gone as soon as I stand up to go home.
If we could only capture half of those thoughts, the world would be a better place. And we'd be a lot more famous.
Love it just back from three days inBeeville Tx shooting white wings really good. Didn’t have a lot of time to just be quiet but the wind was there 20mph for those that have never shot whitewings in that kind of wind. Well you just haven’t lived.
Beautifully described. Personally, my own hunting experience significantly improved after I learned how to practice meditation. Different, I know. Also, as a lifelong avid fly angler, I learned that what I was experiencing was stillness through movement, very similar to the practice of tai chi. So Hank, give fly fishing another chance for experiencing stillness. And BTW, we love your newest book. Thank you.
Although I am not a dove hunter I relish quiet mornings on my deck, looking for deer in my yard searching for the last of my figs on the trees, the occasional possum searching the ground for any fallen figs and various species of birds resting on my garden bean climbing screen soaking in the safety of my yard.
We had a fantastic opener in GA. Everyone got their limit at the field I have been lucky enough to be invited to. That said, it was hot. Probably dangerously hot as myself and a few others couldn’t get our heart rates to slow down.
I love a long sit in a field, deer stand or blind, or while fishing. It’s a great time to slow myself down and reflect.
Not a good year for doves here either, but being out in nature, the quiet is beautiful.
“What lasts isn’t perfection, or knowing everything in advance. It’s patience, it’s laughter, it’s being known — the rarest gift of all.” Well said.
Sunsets in the treestand have managed to get me thru some tough times.... I don't get out as often anymore, but when I do ... its the quiet I need....