WHY OUR CHILDREN NEED TO KNOW & LEARN HUNTING?

The way things have evolved in recent times, have not only influenced our routines and activities but more so have impacted the brought up of our children. More consumed in tech gadgets and virtual engagements, millennial are now being mentored more by internet.

Our generation on the other hand were raised running in open fields, swimming in raw water channels and trapping common sparrows in those long rainy days of winters. Even sometimes nothing would satisfy our souls but a stick in hand to roll our thoughts. Those days tend to be our first point of contact with nature. That was an entrance to the tunnel at the end of which, lies some of life’s small yet greatest lessons.

Though all of those having gone through a fun filled childhood in the outdoors have something to learn from nature, those of us evolved as hunters have gone deeper in that tunnel. For us the hunters, as summers end, longing for a time to go out and experience the unknown of nature grows. And I say the unknown because the grandeur of nature is such that whenever we go out to hunt, a new perspective of life adds to our experience. Hence reassuring that a lifetime is shorter to encompass all the lessons outdoors and hunting has to offer.

These timeless pearls of wisdom in the outdoors can help guide any person in any profession straight to success. However, I distill these experiences into 5 things that can strengthen your approach to both personal and professional life. But more importantly, opportunities to experience these must be crafted for our children so that the bond we as hunters have with nature, can be cascaded down to our generations to come.

WHY OUR CHILDREN NEED TO KNOW & LEARN HUNTING | Featured blog photo

BE THERE, PUT IN YOUR TIME

  1. Our children have somehow developed this notion of achieving overnight success. A wrong approach to life. One lesson learned early on as a hunter is that first of all you need to show up in the habitat. You need to know straight away that as much time it takes for anything to develop or establish is time. And to give time, one need to show up for it. It takes time, effort and practice to get to that point of success. This lesson easily connects the two boundaries between hunting and the rest of life.

EXPERIENCING LOWEST POINTS

You might be the best marksman with the best gear in the world but still come home empty handed. We have a lot of stories to tell where our inexperienced companions with subpar guns got a bigger game bag and we got nothing. It is frustrating and annoying having left you wondering what went wrong. Well, they say a person develops into a man in low points of his life. Imagine experiencing multiple low points in a single day. With each miss you fall down the hole of that low point. And that is where you think and ponder upon yourself and your approach towards it. The result is a man with habitat-tested temperament. Our children need to experience those low points in hunting field as a metaphor for their life where they need to show great temperament even in their lowest point of life.  

PATIENCE

The direct impact of experiencing low points is developing patience. As I said, our children need to learn to give it time to reach to that point of success. And without a well-developed muscle for patience, that’s not possible. Hunting requires a lot of patience, still and silence being in one spot. This ability to tap in that calm and blending in with the habitat strengthens patience. And trust me there is nothing more beautiful than following the pace of nature. A lesson that has countless rewards for our children in their life ahead.

PLANNING AND PREPARATION

Hunting requires a lot of planning and preparation. You start with preparing your gear and planning to reach the habitat. Once you’re there, operational planning starts about routing and scaling the habitat successfully. Also, you need to be well prepared in terms of community norms and traditions, you need to know the laws and regulations of the game you pursue and above all, know the ethics of the game. The same is required for personal life, business or any profession. If you want your children to be well prepared and know the skill of planning to face life, nothing is more practical and life-long than putting them to beat the habitat, read the dogs and track the game. Trust me, each tactic has a lesson for life.

FAILURE ISN’T MISSING, IT’S NOT TRYING

Ask any hunter and they will tell you about a moment where they experienced a game bigger than their expectations. It is a nerve cracking moment where pulling trigger becomes the hardest moment of life. Giving it more time to ensure a sure shot sometimes guarantees a lost opportunity. There is only one moment that is as long as pulling the trigger. It is a moment where you don’t know what might happen unless you try. Same goes with life. We look back and find multiple chances and regret not taking it. An important lesson from the hunting field in a single day. Let your children experience that heart pounding moment and let them know that failure isn’t missing but not trying it.

The list can go on. But fact of the matter is, hunting and time spent in the outdoors gives us more than just calm and serene time. There are lessons that not found in the books. It teaches us how we can be successful in our personal and professional lives. It is just a matter of connecting the dots. And that’s what our children need to learn. If virtual occupation is causing imbalance in their mental and physical wellbeing, it is our responsibility to balance the scale. And the only way is to connect them with nature.