Lucky? Good? Who cares<\/a>]<\/ins><\/p>\nMy disaster will be something like forgetting my bow release, or spooking a deer, because the last two weekends, I have taken a deer. A two-week streak.<\/p>\n
“You’re on a roll, Lund.”<\/p>\n
Yeah, I am, and it’s pretty sweet. I feel like I have learned, that I have figured something out, that I may have ascended to the next level of hunter. I figured I was somewhere around Advanced-Novice or Beginner-Intermediate, maybe even an Intermediate-Intermediate. There’s a long way to go before I reach the three levels of the Advanced Stage, but I’m making progress.<\/p>\n
My recent success has come on the heels of a resounding failure in Wyoming. I was close on a few antelope, but cows, private property, wind or something foiled my efforts and I returned meatless. It was only a $34 tag, but still.<\/p>\n
By a results-based standard, it was a disaster, but how could I call hunting with my girlfriend a disaster? I’d have to be a real piece of work to make that claim. That’s the key in being able to navigate the ebb and flow of life. Context. Perspective. Optimism.<\/p>\n
I used to be terrible at this. I threw little tantrums. I am not immune to them now, but the likelihood of me becoming a woe-is-me pouty brat when things are bad is dramatically reduced and rather than be the ungrateful, pessimistic, unappreciative drag even when things are good, I am in a better position to enjoy the ride.<\/p>\n
So, what will it be that gets me off this hot streak?<\/p>\n
In the last year, I’ve put $6,000 into a vehicle that Blue Books at $4,800, so it probably won’t be that. Well, never mind, it sure could be. I figured after the transmission, brakes and rotors, I was good for a little while. Nope. Bearings and ball joints were next on the menu.<\/p>\n
Will I miss a buck? Not see one? Will the rain continue until June? Maybe. But right now, this moment, life is good.<\/p>\n
I know intellectually that things will level or dip, but that’s not something to worry about. Because just beyond whatever it is, will be another rise.<\/p>\n
If you see yourself as a protagonist, and all of us should, then we know that the protagonist in a good, interesting story has to endure conflicts. A story without conflict isn’t one worth watching because it’s not realistic.<\/p>\n
So, I try to keep the highs high (but not too high) and the lows, medium.<\/p>\n
\n\u2022 Jeff Lund is a writer and teacher based in Ketchikan. \u201cI Went To The Woods,\u201d a reference to Henry David Thoreau, appears in Outdoors twice a month.<\/b><\/p>\n
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