Slow Day In A Dove Field

It was a beautiful, sunny, cool fall afternoon… a great day for a dove shoot. Will, Wilson (black lab) and I caught a ride with a friend and his sons to our dove field just North of Cairo Ga.  We were running a little late so we were in a hurry for no particular reason since the birds usually wont fly until later in the day.  It reminded me of going to a wedding, you hurry up and then wait;  but we were free for a couple of hours and two men and their boys were on a mission.  After one stop for peanuts and pork skins, we made our way to the field where everyone had taken there appropriate spots in the picked peanut field.  Will and I found a great spot on the corner of a tree line where we could see both ways, although we had to stare straight into the sun.  Wow it was bright!  He had his single shot 28 gauge and I was shooting my 12 gauge as I have pretty much given up on the 20 gauge at this point in my life. It's just more fun for the dog when he has something to fetch from time to time; if you know what I mean. 

Will was into the whole thing. He would call out “BIRD!” when he saw them dive into the field.   As soon as we set our stuff down, he loaded up and started shooting.  The birds flew way out of range, but the cool part was that he loaded up and started shooting on his own! This is in contrast to his cautious demeanor of last year. It is the experience of it all and “doing” that makes the difference.  At one point Will apologized for missing.  I said, “First of all get used to it.  I have been doing these 30 years and look at me.  Secondly, you have shot just as many as anyone else in the field."  He used to worry about shooting, but he was totally comfortable in his skin today.  The coolest thing for me was to see my son growing up before my very eyes.  It happens everyday, but we are usually too busy to notice.  Only when we take the time to give ourselves to others and take the time to watch, do we see our reward.  The birds never really came in the field that day but I had the best entertainment of all. At the end of the day we toted our chairs, shells and hunting stuff back and loaded the truck. 

As for our lab Wilson, he didn’t have much to do.  A retrieving machine with more energy than a splitting atom, he was restless to say the least.  Because there was nothing to pick up and he was driving me crazy, therefore I tied his leash to a three foot log to replace me. I told him, “Wilson, some things can hold you back in life, for you, it a three foot log”.  It didn’t stop that dog from being annoying, but it did slow him down a bit. Will thought that the whole thing was pretty funny.

All and all, it was a very slow, unproductive and relaxing afternoon. A father and son taking time to talk, tell jokes and just be together.  Thank you Will for giving me a great afternoon.  Keep shooting and being you.