I started hunting - really hunting - the week my grandfather died. It was never really part of my life in a meaningful way until that time. I shot guns, I fished, I spent a hell of a lot of time outdoors. While many kids grew up in the confines of a city, I split my time: able to reference one from the other.
This is a tough time of year for me - far too many hours spent indoors, THINKING about what it's like outside. Recent weather in MN has been unseasonable, and that is disappointing; but being IN it, is still better than being OUT of it. I work in an indutry that value outdoors, but I think the adage of the quickest way to get off a bike is get into the biking industry is close to the truth.
I am selling my truck. Currently not actively, but this summer, I will be without a vehicle. It's economical, it's prudent, but it's not me. This decision has forced a lot of questions: what do I NEED? What can i live with? WHEN do I need something different? WHAT sort of impact am I making for my future, and one day, my children? I'm a pragmatist - I know that climate change is inevitable, but I do not know what causes it. I am aware of my potential role and will move to change it, but am not convinced that it is completely man-made. Still, I want to lessen the impact in the short-term.
I recently completed "Let My People go Surfing" By Yvon Chouinard, the founder of Patagonia, and I also watched 180ยบ South on an unrelated spree. I think the questions posed about our effects on the earth are worth asking. How do we impact our world, either positively and negatively? Further, how do we minimize or mitigate this?
I want more of this. I want this to be a spring board for experiencing our natural world; raw and uncut. I wish for others to experience the world in unedited splendor, as I have. Life, Death, Sorrow, Joy and conservation. The only way to experience the way this world was meant to be is to EXPERIENCE it. As a community, we can do it. What role do you play?
My time is tight this time of year: but not so tight that I cannot make time for people wanting to experience the outdoors. Do you want to hunt or fish? Do you want to share your knowledge? Let's talk, it's time we created more stewards for the land.
