Why my daughter will get every stuffed animal on her Christmas List & more…

As the title implies this post has very little to do with hunting in terms of how most would define it; this blog, this Hunt2Prove in general, is more about the little things that shape my life as a hunter; my mindset with respect to change and growth as an individual; my struggle to be the best person I can be; and, my fight to be the steward of our wildlife today that gives them and all hunters like me, hope for tomorrow. JMH

It’s that time of year where the beginnings of a Christmas list can be found in many households with young children – My house and my 6-year-old daughter are no different. As the orange and yellow shades of fall catapult us towards the silver and gold hue of winter and the Christmas season, Savanna’s list gives spark to my imagination that, as an adult, is sometimes void and lacking. In her young, fledgling penmanship she writes…

At first glance I find myself saying “No” to things that I’m certain will end up as nothing more than dust collectors taking up precious space.  Accompany that thought with the price of today’s stuffed animals and I really begin to question whether or not Santa will be able to pull this list together.  And then, just as quickly as the negative thoughts of dust and expense came, I began to the see the positives of my little girl asking for stuffed animals in the year 2015 – Less time in front of the iPad using someone else’s imagination and more time using her own.

Don’t get me wrong – I’m aware that a child can still use their imagination when fiddling with an iPad.  I’m also aware that it took one heck of an imagination to design and build some of the many iPad games she has and, ultimately, the ultra-realistic stuffed animals she wants.  But, from my perspective, only one of the two is the right fit for my little girl this Christmas – the herd of stuffed animals.

I have hope that they will generate the much needed slow-down that she needs – that, in my opinion, every kid needs.  That I need!  Today, everything is fast-paced – especially growing up.  School and what they need to know in the 1st grade seems to be well beyond the scope of things that I learned in the 1st grade.  Society seems hell bent on making my little girl grow up when all I want her to do is remain my “little” girl just a little while longer.  Virtual interaction is taking the place of REAL interaction and, if you ask me, it’s not a good thing!  As a hunter I have to wonder – is the day coming when virtual deer and turkey take the place of the real ones I love to chase?  I know this may seem far-fetched today.  But, will it 100 years from now?  You can draw your own conclusions.

With Thanksgiving on the horizon, I’m thankful for my daughter and her “20-51” Christmas list; I’m thankful for stuffed animals and wolf pictures.  My musings on the slower paced world of yesterday where the only two realities of stuffed animals and real ones will soon be interrupted by the chime of my cell phone, the dinging of my laptop, or the virtual howl of a wolf emanating from Savanna’s iPad and one of her many “simulator” games.  Somewhere in the pure, untainted part of my soul, from the fox to the jaguar, the thought of Savanna’s stuffed animals gives me hope.