Some of you out there may know that we just welcomed our second grandkid. My daughter just had a little boy who hopefully will go on outings with his girl child cousin and me,their old Grandad into the trackless wastes of the wilderness and on the back forty of some familiar farms. Being a new Grandad tends to bring on a sense of all knowing and all seeing Grandfatherly wisdom, and knowledge which of course you want to impart on the less fortunate and those not blessed with your wisdom. (Honestly you guys may just have to put up with this for a while)
As we have discussed here before the outdoors and introducing youngsters to the wonders of hunting and fishing is a great way to bring up and raise a better class of children. Better for them and better for society and the world in general. You don’t think so? Stay with me here while you eat your Wheaties or have another cup of bad coffee. Here are some of the ways to raise that kid in the outdoors. Remember that muddy boots makes a happy kid.
Start ‘em young. Now just how young may be up for discussionbut you can figure it out. I am talking about even if you are still carrying them most of the time, take them with you. It doesn’t have to be an all day, daylight to dark excursion (in fact, don’t do that at first) but short trips to acclimate everyone to a hunting or fishing environment is a good idea. The idea here is to start very young so the kids can become familiar with these outings and will start to enjoy it.
Several years ago I happened to be in the company of some very avid outdoorsmen, one being a fulltime hunting and fishing guide and the other a game warden who is an active hunter. We were in the middle of the early goose season and when they both showed up with young children that early morning, I was a little skeptical. In the pre-dawn darkness getting kids out of car seatswhile they were still asleep seemed a little strange to me. I was doubtful about the whole thing but I shouldn’t have been. Once everybody woke up and we got in the blinds, everything was just fine. The three youngsters were not one bit of trouble, they sat still when the needed to, played quietly when no geese were around and I realized they added a lot to the trip. When some honkers did come to our decoys and the shooting stopped I think a couple of them outran the retrievers to pick up geese. They loved it, they were having fun. (Remember that part about having fun)
Let them do it. The tendency for most parents, and I was certainly guilty of it, is to jump in and do everything for the kids so they “won’t mess it up”. Turn them loose, let them do it. You need some close supervision when dealing with sharp knives and firearms of course, but if you are only worried about the possibility of making a little mess, or they “might do it wrong”don’t worry about it. Give even the small children a free hand and watch what happens. They will love it. Kids catch on fast that you are letting them do something that is a little out of the sphere of what children are usually allowed to do. It makes them feel important and part of the things that need to be done. Kids want to do this, they want to jump in and be a part of the wholeouting, not just be told to “sit over there, and be quiet until we shoot something”. So let them help build the blind, skin a deer or clean a turkey, catch bait in the creek, and wash dishes and build fires in camp. They will remember this and look forward to doing it again, they will actually think it is fun. (There is that fun thing again)
Don’t make a big deal out of it and it won’t be. There are things in the outdoor world that adults sometimes want to be squeamish about. Killing game and taking fish to eat require care in field dressing and preparing it to be cooked. It is a fact of life, it is what you have to do, if you go about it as a normal part of the process most kids will catch on quick. Let them help you, let them get their hands dirty. If you start them out early on thisyou will soon have a great helper that may surpass you in the skills of taking care of your game in the field. The idea here is to be positive about all of this, whether you are field dressing a deer or putting out a decoy spread. Kids are a blank canvas and little sponges, if you or a member of your party are negative about something it may transfer to the youngsters. If you are serving wild game and one person says they don’t like venison or squirrel gravy and biscuits it may sway others, kids included. Be positive, let them make up their own mind.
Learning to be a better person. Kids like to learn. Maybe you have caught on that there is lot of learning going on for the young person reared up in the outdoors. All of the myriad of skills to be learned by the outdoorsman (remember that is boys and girls) make you a better, confident, self-reliant, well rounded and well equipped person to face all of the things that life will throw at you. And by the way we didn’t even begin to scratch the surface on the number of things they can learn in the huntin’ camp and on the river bank. Kids trained in the outdoors will just naturally be a well adjusted and confident citizen, who doesn’t want that?
Take ‘em to the woods. Take ‘em to the creeks and rivers. Let them get wet and cold and cut a finger. Get them some boots and keep them muddy. When they are grown they will thank you for it.
Larryocase3@gmail.com www.gunsandcornbread.com