Legacy of a Sportsman

So, why is it important to be intentional about passing on your legacy as a sportsman? You love the outdoors. It is your passion. It is where we feel alive. Is it important to somehow capture all of the adventures and emotions and somehow express them to the generations that will follow us? The miles you have walked through the woods, and the depths you have floated on your favorite lakes or the ripples you have counted on the river and all of the memories that those events encompass. Is it important to capture all of the thoughts and conversations that you have while spending countless hours with those people that you love?

What were some of the most memorable camp fire discussions you had? What made your belly laugh so hard, that you felt like you were drowning with no air? How much emotional healing have you had over the years by smelling the sweet aroma of the morning mist; Or watching a breath taking sunset beyond the horizon, as you and you son sit on a rock. You spend both quality time and quantity of time in the field.

How many hours in the car swapping stories, eating beef jerky(as if eating beef jerky somehow brings us closer to nature) and anticipating the hunting or fishing experience in which you were about to embark? This is where you lose yourself and find yourself, all at the same time. Things become clear and less complicated. This is where you connect with your friends and family. This is where some of the most important lessons in life were learned and now taught. The field and what you learned from it, is your legacy.

We first have to give definition to what legacy is, and legacy is about teaching others about the life experiences that you have. You were taught how to shoot a gun, or how to cast a line, look for game on the side of a shady ridge. How to clean a shotgun, tie a fly, load ammo. You were taught the skill of holding in that sneeze and staying still when that big buck was just out of range. You were taught how to fight the urge to sleep later, but instead to get up and get the “worm” (remember the “early bird” saying?)

Legacy is about passing values to those that are most important to us. The honesty of passing on a questionable shot, or avoiding the temptation to fish with two rods instead of one, even though you know no one else will know. It’s about passing convictions, and it’s about seeing those things blossom in the lives of those that you love. Legacy is about your present past and your future working together to impact to the lives of your children and your children’s children. So what lessons are taught while you are hunting and fishing?

· You’re teaching the beauty and the care for the creation that you’re enjoying.
· You’re teaching respect for animals and other people.
· You’re teaching integrity of the sportsman in general and what your values are.
· You’re teaching safety and readiness.
· You’re teaching how to focus under pressure

This concept of legacy brought new meaning to me the first time my son shot his first bird out of the air at age 9. I was dancing around with my gun in the air like I had just won the lottery. Something inside of me had been stirred unlike anything I had ever experienced. He and I celebrated, laughed and to this day still retell the story of what happed on that late September afternoon. What occurred during that hunt that was beyond special. It was more than memorable. I don’t want to lose this experience. I want my son’s grandchildren to know about the day he shot his first dove. The hunt itself had a higher meaning. It wasn’t about filling my limit, or outdoing my hunting comrades. It was about investing my life in the life of my son.

Legacy brought new meaning to me the first time my 6 year old daughter caught her first trout. As she reeled in that 8-inch stocker, my life changed forever. We bonded in a way that was not possible before that fish. As we sat hand in hand on the edge of that pond, waiting for the next unlucky little “tyke” to eat the morsel on the end of her line, I was at peace as a dad. My role for that moment, was complete.

Isn’t it interesting that we are discussing the change that Legacy, and passing things on in the future has a way of changing our lives for the better, today? Legacy is not just about the future, it is about being who we were created to be, today.

Those with children and grandchildren have stories of their own, special stories. It would be such a shame to lose those stories. Every sportsman should do whatever possible to preserve this unique tool that we have to teach the generations that will follow about the importance of being a sportsman and passing on their traits through a sportsman legacy.