HunterHarry
Long Time Member
- Messages
- 5,002
A long time ago I read a story about a young man who was out goose hunting and on the way back in came across an old man. They struck up a conversation as they were slogging their way back in from the marsh.The old man had only one bird slung over his shoulder while the kid had shot his limit and then some!The old man sensed that the kid was very nervous and fidgety and not a dyed in the wool poacher and thought that he could make a difference. The old man asked the kid if he hunts here much,the kid responded "Yeah my friends and I sometimes have contests to see who can limit out the first, This is a real good spot!" The old man said " Yeah I can remember those days, but I now belong to the "Respectors and don't feel a need to prove myself anymore". The kid looked up and asked "the Respectors?" so the old man went on to explain;The Respectors are the most honored group of outdoorsmen that I know of,You see there are five categories of outdoorsmen.The first are comprised of greenhorns and novices. They are content with anything they harvest in the field because they have yet to develop the outdoor skills that you and I have.People in the second category are the "mass harvesters" they show their friends what great outdoorsmen they are by taking limits if fish and game, to them numbers are everything and they feel unsuccessful unless they have bagged a limit. People in the third category are the third category are the "Trophy Sportsmen" after numbers they want records the bigger the better and usually they are very good hunters or fisherman and need the big ones to be satisfied. It seems that the next progression is to the "Purist" stage these are the guys that hunt Grizzly with a bow or tackle King salmon on six pound test to get their fulfillment, this stage is usually the shortest lived of the stages, the old man says. The boy laughed and says "yeah I know a guy like that!" The fifth and final category is the respectors. A member of this group is a joy to watch in the field, he takes only what he needs,releasing most of his catch and what he does take he takes great pride in carefully dressing the fish or animal in a way that shows true respect for the life that he took,as he has no need to prove anything to anybody,he hunts and fishes for the pure love of the sport and answers to a higher calling.He truly loves the creatures that he pursues and is very gratified with the release of the wonderful animals that have given him such joy.He knows that he has the power of life and death over them but has evolved beyond the need to kill at every chance he gets.He feels a kindred, with the creature of his persuits,he feels he knows them better than most people and has spent innumerable days afield learning their ways and has developed a spiritual bond with these magnificent animals and are thankful for the many years of joy they have provided him. The boy hung his head in shame and asked him to help him go back and pick up the "extra" birds that he had shot and asked if there was a homeless shelter where he could donate the meat, as it was way more than he could eat himself. Together the old man and the boy picked and cleaned the birds and while on the way to donate the meat, the old man pats the boy on the back and says------------"WELCOME TO THE CLUB"
