[3blade]

Don't apologize for having the fire. If success didn't matter, we wouldn't do what we do. The kill matters. It's what separates a hunter from a nature walker, an active participant from a passive observer. I didn't walk around in the woods and then decide to hunt. I wanted to hunt and that made me appreciate the woods.

Many old guys don't have the experience of getting blanked on a long wait moose tag. It's gut wrenching, especially when you look forward to it for years. Getting to hunt the same animals every year, and thus learn about them and become more successful is a thing of the past. "Oh maybe next year" has turned into a decade, sometimes never, for moose.

I'd be willing to bet those who talk about sparkling snow and animals just magically showing up aren't staring down an empty freezer, with a young family and limited time off. Not that I'm suggesting any ill will, but I take the words of the past with the understanding that they come from the perspective of the past.

Don't ease up. That's what you will regret. Go hard right till the bitter end, and whatever happens you can be proud of yourself.