James B,

I know you're not knocking your older hunting buddies that don't hunt as much, but let me shed some light on what you can expect.

I too have lost a lot of older friends to health problems, loss of interest, and death. There's not a day goes by that I don't miss them all, particularly when at our hunting camp which runs from Sept thru Jan and again in Turkey season and our fishing trips. I miss going to their camps and listening to the stories. I miss taking my dad and his buddy to the woods and setting up their camp for them , I miss the one that always drank to much at camp and didn't hunt, but was a great cook and did all of it. I miss the loud mouth, the griper, the bragger, the one that wouldn't wash the first dish at camp, the one that never cut a stick of firewood, the one that never brought groceries and bumbed off the rest, the one that borrowed a gun.

Right now I could choke my brother, he'll buy food and bring it to our weekly hunting club supper, which we all take turns cooking, but he would starve to death before cooking a meal. To make matters worse, he's one of the best cooks' I know. I miss my ole buddy that actually drank hisself to death grieving. He didn't know a thing about hunting when it came to actually doing it, but he could talk a good game. Loved to take him with me because he was in some ways like a kid.

I'm here to tell you, you've got more buddies with you than you'll ever know, until they're gone. I'm not knocking you, but Lord knows I wish I could have them back to argue with and laugh at. One day it'll hit home!

dog1