The old saying goes, "you have to go away if you ever want to come back". I've been away for a while, and now I'm trying to get back into the AR habit as we roll into the winter months of Montana. I just went through my profile and my last post was September 19 - an eternity in today's world of instant information and gratification. It has been a good two months by and large, sprinkled with some heartache but, such is life.
I accomplished a few of the personal goals that I set for myself last spring, the biggest being to get outdoors more this fall specifically as it relates to our big game hunting seasons. I bow hunted more this year than I did the last 3-4 years combined, put several miles on my hunting boots, saw some great sunrises and sunsets and found a little bit of what had been missing over the past few years. I tagged my first pronghorn - another goal of mine - a nice mule deer/whitetail deer hybrid, packed an elk out for one of my friends, played a chess match with a bull elk of my own through the high mountain timber that he won, saw several moose, bear, elk, deer and antelope.
I have been busy with work, but have made a conscious effort to take time off and spend it with my wife and kids - a third goal - and I have enjoyed it. It was difficult at first, but I put more deals together slacking off than I did being available 24/7 so I may be onto something....I believe Eastern philosophers refer to it as "balance".
Late October and early November were tough months. October 26th marked the passing of my grandfather, the 31st the funeral of my grandfather and the 5th birthday of my son, a bittersweet day of mixed emotions. My grandmother asked me to deliver his eulogy, which I gladly did though one of the most difficult things I have ever undertaken. November 11th saw the 1st birthday of my youngest daughter, the 12th the wedding of my sister, the 17th the 103rd birthday of my great-grandmother and the 20th her passing. I drove to ND on Thanksgiving Day to deliver her eulogy that Friday. A celebration of life, no doubt, when she was born Teddy Roosevelt was in the White House - wrap your heads around that.
As we roll into the holidays - take the time to enjoy the blessings that God has bestowed upon you, take a walk in the woods or a drive in the country, call your parents and tell them you love them, your grandparents too if they are still living, hug your children, greet a stranger and if you get the chance, watch the sun rise over the mountains - there is no better way to feel so insignificant yet so important at the same time.
Merry Christmas and God bless.
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