If my son or daughter refuses to eat the meat he or she harvests, it is my bold opinion that they will not be allowed to hunt. That’s right. If you’re not going to respect the animal by harvesting it over the family dinner table with appreciation, retire your gear and find another sport to embrace. The only acceptable option would be to donate the meat to a shelter.
Don’t put your hunting pants on backward
As a McClain — and a cancer survivor — hunting isn’t about trophy hunting, killing animals, hanging heads on the wall, waiting for the biggest buck in the woods, uncalculated shots with a firearm, shooting out of range because “it’s a monster buck,” shooting a dog-of-a-deer for lack of patience or cerebral intelligence, or staying up late drinking beers at camp waiting on the ace of spades.
If any of those are your reasons for hunting, what a damn sad shame.
Hunting is:
- being grateful for the God-given privilege to partake in the blessing of harvesting an animal
- participating in the balance of nature
- respecting the gift of life
- the ability to be an animal lover and a hunter simultaneously
- providing food for my family
- eating nonhormone-injected, low-fat meat
- educating the next generation on the importance, safety and privilege to bear and use arms
- camaraderie that creates trust, respect, knowledge and close connections
- perfecting the skill sets and natural talent it takes to do this sport – and do it well
- mental agility and perseverance
- land calculations and weather interpretations