It’s Oct. 1, 2014, opening day of bow season in Midland, Mich., and here I sit in the library writing this. You may be confused why, but you have to understand. In a town full of crazy smart asses it’s hard to play catch up. Well I’m not here to talk about school. I’m here to tell you how hunting can be an experience of a lifetime.

First and foremost, you have to be able to have patience. The art of patience is the most difficult part of hunting. Because you have to wait hours in the woods waiting for the woods to wake up. And then for the deer to come. You wait all morning and all evening, but if you’re lucky there will be a few deer that will show up. But not just having patience to wait in the stand. You have to take lots of time preparing the woods all year. Taking out corn, acorns, licking blocks, etc… But you have to be able to handle the wait for deer season. Because one year you’ll pass deer left and right, but you know there is that big one you let grow last year. And when he comes the wait is over and know it’s all up to your shot.

Some call hunters nature freaks. But they don’t realize how amazing it is when the woods wake up. The robins, blue jays, sparrows, and all the other birds wake up with their singing. You see the squirrels running around making tons of noise, fighting and playing with each other. The turkeys gobbling and flaring their feathers. Small bucks butting heads trying to prove dominance over the others. Does bleating, bucks grunting, bucks trying to find their mate for the season. But hunting is a part of nature by shooting the larger deer and letting the smaller deer grow older and bigger.

I know some may say there is not a buck out there that is a giant. But if you let them grow, let them live a long life, and let the big deer go, there will always be a monster out there. But the hardest art of hunting is camouflage. You have to keep your blind/stand well kept. Keep it in the open, but hidden so it blends in with the surroundings. You have to wear camo everywhere, from your head to your legs. If there is one part of you that is not covered there is that possibility the deer will see you. Because if you’re not covered up and that buck of a life time walks out in front of you and sees you, YOUR’RE SCREWED. He will run off and that might have been your only chance to take him.

And for all you anti-hunters, this is a way of life. It’s how people fill their freezers. Feed their families. Some of it’s their job and some don’t have a job and that’s the way they make it through the winter. But if you disagree don’t get mad at me. Get mad at the people that made our country. The ones who also fought to free us from the king. What did they know you may say, but they had guns too and they also hunted.