WEBVTT - Ep. 287: This Country Life - Measuring Success

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to This Country Life. I'm your host, Brent Reeves

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<v Speaker 1>from coon hunting to trot lining and just general country living.

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<v Speaker 1>I want you to stay a while as I share

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<v Speaker 1>my experiences in life lessons. This Country Life is presented

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<v Speaker 1>by Case Knives on Meat Eaters Podcast Network, bringing you

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<v Speaker 1>the best outdoor podcast the airwaves have to offer. All right, friends,

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<v Speaker 1>grab a chair or drop that tailgate. I've got some

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<v Speaker 1>stories to share. Measuring success. There's a lot of ways

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<v Speaker 1>you can measure success and money in the banking material

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<v Speaker 1>possessions are only two. I'm going to talk about one

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<v Speaker 1>way that I've learned to calculate it. But first, I'm

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<v Speaker 1>going to tell you a story. I know it's like

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<v Speaker 1>three weeks past Christmas, but I had to get a

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<v Speaker 1>bunch of episodes ahead so our favorite sound engineer and

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<v Speaker 1>doer of all things related to the intelligence side of

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<v Speaker 1>This Country Life, Reva Hansen, could go home to see

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<v Speaker 1>her folks over the holidays. I didn't do a dedicated

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<v Speaker 1>Christmas episode because I wasn't really sure in what order

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<v Speaker 1>they'd be posted, so I filed this listener story to

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<v Speaker 1>be told next year. But it correlates to measuring success.

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<v Speaker 1>This week's theme and I can't wait a year to

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<v Speaker 1>tell it. It's too good. And it comes from this

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<v Speaker 1>Country life listener, Oklahoma's own Dane Fuller. And in Dane's

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<v Speaker 1>words and my voice, here we go. Growing up, Christmas

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<v Speaker 1>Eve meant one thing, ma'am. I own Papov's house. It

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<v Speaker 1>was a tradition of the Fullers dating back to I

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<v Speaker 1>believe three days after dirt was invented. RC and Edith

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<v Speaker 1>Gert Fuller had a pretty big family, five boys and

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<v Speaker 1>one girl. Eventually, as kids back them did, they all

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<v Speaker 1>left home to start families of their own, and soon

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<v Speaker 1>they began bringing them back for the holidays. Not only

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<v Speaker 1>kids and grandkids were there, but great aunts and uncles,

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<v Speaker 1>second cousins, and so forth. By the nineteen seventies, there

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<v Speaker 1>was approximately four hundred and ninety seven men, women and

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<v Speaker 1>children cramed to that old house out in the sticks

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<v Speaker 1>of Muskogee County in northeastern Oklahoma every Christmas Eve. Not

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<v Speaker 1>really that many, but it sure seemed like it. One

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<v Speaker 1>particular December twenty fourth, the house was filled to capacity.

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<v Speaker 1>We had all eaten supper and everyone was gathered in

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<v Speaker 1>the front room. All of us grandkids were excited because

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<v Speaker 1>Pap had finally said we could open presents. Our grandparents

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<v Speaker 1>weren't rich, In fact, they had very little. Somehow though

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<v Speaker 1>every year they managed to get us off something. This

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<v Speaker 1>year times must have been a little tougher than normal,

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<v Speaker 1>because instead of buying a tree, Pap had gone up

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<v Speaker 1>the hill with his double bit axe and chopped down

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<v Speaker 1>a cedar tree a few weeks earlier, and by the

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<v Speaker 1>time the festivities rolled around, that cedar tree had turned

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<v Speaker 1>into the color of a brown paper bag. Christmas lights

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<v Speaker 1>back in the seventies were of the variety that could

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<v Speaker 1>rival the temperature of the sun. Twinkle lights weren't anywhere

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<v Speaker 1>close to happening, being as how the tree had morphed

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<v Speaker 1>into something akin to napalm. The adults in the room

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<v Speaker 1>had decided that no string of Christmas lights would be

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<v Speaker 1>plugged in. The grandkids tried their cow eyed angel face

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<v Speaker 1>best to talk Papa into plugging them in, but he

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<v Speaker 1>wouldn't budge. All of us tried, except for one, Scott cousin.

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<v Speaker 1>Scott was born in the middle third of the order

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<v Speaker 1>as far as grandkid ages went. However, he was lead

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<v Speaker 1>off on the kind of kid that when his dad

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<v Speaker 1>said not to do something or he'd get a whooping.

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<v Speaker 1>Scott would ask how much of a woman? It was

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<v Speaker 1>awesome being Scott's cousin back then, I could tear the

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<v Speaker 1>barn down, and if he was there, I'd never get

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<v Speaker 1>so much as looked at. Everybody just knew Scott did

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<v Speaker 1>it anyway. He was seated next to me that night.

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<v Speaker 1>Next to him was the television. Behind it was the

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<v Speaker 1>outlet that would have had the plugs that were all

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<v Speaker 1>lying on the floor going to the lights that were

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<v Speaker 1>still draped on the Christmas tree. The duty of passing

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<v Speaker 1>out presence this night had fallen to Aint Judy, the

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<v Speaker 1>lone girl of the Fuller kids. Being a girl with

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<v Speaker 1>five brothers, Judy had put up with a lot in

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<v Speaker 1>her day, not enough, though, to have obtained a calm

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<v Speaker 1>demeanor capable of taking on anything. To say that she

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<v Speaker 1>is easily frazzled is an understatement. After the first twenty

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<v Speaker 1>or so kids had gotten their presence, Judy was nearing

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<v Speaker 1>the end of her rope. The sound of shredding wrapping paper,

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<v Speaker 1>squeals of delight, and parents yelling at the kids to

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<v Speaker 1>wait their turn and taking its toll on Judy. It

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<v Speaker 1>was at this precise moment Scott made his mood. Without

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<v Speaker 1>tapping my knee or giving me so much as hey,

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<v Speaker 1>watch this, he slithered behind the TV and picked up

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<v Speaker 1>the light stream plug, eager to see the lights and

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<v Speaker 1>maybe get him the busting of his life. I didn't

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<v Speaker 1>say a word. He gave me a look, and with

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<v Speaker 1>a crooked smile, he plugged into the lights. Oh what

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<v Speaker 1>a glorious sight. The reds, greens, blues, and orange bulls

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<v Speaker 1>came to life. Nobody noticed except for me, Scott's sister Charmon,

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<v Speaker 1>and my sister Karen. The adults were too busy breaking

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<v Speaker 1>up fights over cap pistols and baby dolls. They had

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<v Speaker 1>no idea of the coup that Scott had pulled off.

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<v Speaker 1>For about two seconds, almost as suddenly as the light

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<v Speaker 1>has appeared, they were being put to shame by the

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<v Speaker 1>flame shooting out from that long dead cedar tree. Everyone

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<v Speaker 1>noticed now. Uncle pee Wee grabbed the cord and tried

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<v Speaker 1>to yank it out of the socket, and doing so

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<v Speaker 1>he knocked over the infire older that was once considered

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<v Speaker 1>a Christmas tree. Things sort of got blurry after that.

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<v Speaker 1>The house was full of smoke. Dad's grabbed kids and

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<v Speaker 1>started litterly throwing toward the back door. Moms had to

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<v Speaker 1>run in the kitchen to ketch him before any bones

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<v Speaker 1>were broken. By this time, Uncle Rudy had waded through

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<v Speaker 1>the sea of kids wrapping paper and toys and made

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<v Speaker 1>it to the tree. He began trying to stump the

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<v Speaker 1>fire out. Somebody no one knows who got the front

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<v Speaker 1>door open, the very door that hadn't been opened for

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<v Speaker 1>years because ma'ama didn't want it to wear a hole

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<v Speaker 1>in her carpet. Terrified me because I was sitting next

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<v Speaker 1>to the door and had been threatened with a switch

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<v Speaker 1>for even acting like I might open it. I knew

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<v Speaker 1>without aut I would get busted for snagging the carpet,

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<v Speaker 1>no matter the black hole that had just been burned

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<v Speaker 1>in it. Uncle Tuffy, Scott's dad, grabbed the steel burning

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<v Speaker 1>torch of a tree, knocked me out of the way,

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<v Speaker 1>and threw it in the front yard. Amidst the chaos,

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<v Speaker 1>the screams, and the smoke, still in the center of

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<v Speaker 1>the room was Judy running for her life with her

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<v Speaker 1>hands clasping a frace and she was screaming, oh my, gosh,

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<v Speaker 1>oh my gosh, oh my gosh over and over and over,

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<v Speaker 1>trying desperately to get herself and her kids out of life.

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<v Speaker 1>She never made it one edge farther from the tree

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<v Speaker 1>than she was at the moment of combustion. She was

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<v Speaker 1>literally running in circles. Pap had never made it out

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<v Speaker 1>of the cliner, Dad had never made it off the couch.

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<v Speaker 1>Both were laughing as hard as I had ever seen

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<v Speaker 1>anyone laugh. By now Scott had made it out from

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<v Speaker 1>behind the RC eight. He probably knew that he should

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<v Speaker 1>run while he was still label, but he was too busy,

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<v Speaker 1>enjoined the fruits of his labor, enamored by the sights

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<v Speaker 1>of all the carnage, he never noticed his dad reaching

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<v Speaker 1>for him. No one knows exactly what happened to Scott

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<v Speaker 1>once his dad pulled him away, but after the tears

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<v Speaker 1>dried up, he was as quiet as a church mouse

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<v Speaker 1>for the rest of the night. Christis averted. It wasn't

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<v Speaker 1>long until all the windows and the doors in the

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<v Speaker 1>house were opened to let the smoke down. Everyone had

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<v Speaker 1>resumed their positions, though wearing their coach. Now what was

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<v Speaker 1>left of the presence was handed out in Scott and

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<v Speaker 1>never sat next to that old TV again. And according

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<v Speaker 1>to DAMEE Fuller, Native Oklahoma, now spying on the Texans

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<v Speaker 1>down in childish, that's just how that happened. Now, this is,

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<v Speaker 1>without a doubt, the best submission amongst the sea of

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<v Speaker 1>great ones that have ever been sent in by you.

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<v Speaker 1>Stories like this will always find a way to the top.

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<v Speaker 1>Y'all keep them coming, Thank you, Dame. Measuring success any

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<v Speaker 1>purposeful experience we have where we hope to gain something

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<v Speaker 1>from the endeavor, whether it's knowledge, a new skill, or

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<v Speaker 1>something tangible. Once it's over, we have a reckoning of

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<v Speaker 1>how successful or unsuccessful that struggle was. Was what we

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<v Speaker 1>gathered from that exercise worth what we sacrifice for the

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<v Speaker 1>end goal? And that's a question we can all relate

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<v Speaker 1>to now. Every day lies from getting up and going

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<v Speaker 1>to work, buying groceries, or for our leisurely pursuits. It's

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<v Speaker 1>easy to get discouraged after a trip to the grocery

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<v Speaker 1>store when you compare what you paid for for what

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<v Speaker 1>you brought home. Soon you have to go back and

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<v Speaker 1>do it all over again. The one way to deal

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<v Speaker 1>with that is to grow your own, which requires effort

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<v Speaker 1>on your part. Once you start down that road to

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<v Speaker 1>do it right, it requires daily attention to reap the

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<v Speaker 1>best rewards. Now that's an investment in time and effort

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<v Speaker 1>versus the rewards and the literal fruit and vegetables of

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<v Speaker 1>your labors. The end of the growing season dictates if

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<v Speaker 1>the effort was outweighed by the rewards. I liked farming

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<v Speaker 1>growing up, but I was not a fan of gardening.

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<v Speaker 1>Farming was different in that it was tractors and implements,

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<v Speaker 1>and garden was me on the ignorant end of a

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<v Speaker 1>whole stooped over with a bucket, picking tomatoes and beans

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<v Speaker 1>and peas. It was always what stood between me and

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<v Speaker 1>the things I wanted to do. I'm going fishing in

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<v Speaker 1>the morning. I'll be leaving before breakfast, to which my

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<v Speaker 1>mother would respond, we're picking peas in the morning. You

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<v Speaker 1>can go after that's done. A fooled again. Now, I

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<v Speaker 1>didn't mind ripping the rewards from those forced efforts when

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<v Speaker 1>the time came to mash a double handful of him

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<v Speaker 1>into a piece of hot buttered corn bread. But as

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<v Speaker 1>a young man with fishing on his mind, breaking the

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<v Speaker 1>sweat while bent over in a pea patch trying to

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<v Speaker 1>fill a five gallon bucket was the farthest thing from

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<v Speaker 1>a plate full of goodness that you could get now

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<v Speaker 1>later on, had you asked me if it was worth

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<v Speaker 1>the trouble at the sibber table after my first bite

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<v Speaker 1>of peas and corn bread, and the Andrew would have

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<v Speaker 1>been an emphatic yes, Yes it was. But this is

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<v Speaker 1>the magic of the passage of time, both in the

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<v Speaker 1>measure of success and the maturity of a person. I

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<v Speaker 1>find it a lot easier to recognize where my efforts

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<v Speaker 1>are heading with each passing birthday, something I couldn't see

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<v Speaker 1>past where I was standing earlier in my life. I

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<v Speaker 1>tended to live my life for the here and now,

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<v Speaker 1>never thinking beyond tomorrow, because tomorrow was a long way away.

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<v Speaker 1>But before I knew it, tomorrow was today. Spent several

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<v Speaker 1>days with some folks in Kansas last week at one

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<v Speaker 1>of the Meat Eatter Experience events, the lat Vin Eagle himself,

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<v Speaker 1>Joannis Vitellius, and I gathered up with nine folks from

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<v Speaker 1>all walks of life in all parts of the country

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<v Speaker 1>to hunt ducks and geese in central Kansas with a

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<v Speaker 1>folks at foul Planes Waterfowl Outfitters. My colleague Michael Reetveil

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<v Speaker 1>from first light was there and organizing the whole affair

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<v Speaker 1>from the admin's side of things, and had everything squared

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<v Speaker 1>away from the moment Jannis and I got there. As

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<v Speaker 1>I stumbled my way through this life of mine, I

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<v Speaker 1>find it interest in how uncommonly common it is for

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<v Speaker 1>me to run into someone that I know or have

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<v Speaker 1>a connection with in the most random of places. I

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<v Speaker 1>take away the many people I run into airports and

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<v Speaker 1>restaurants that follow this show and others I've been blessed

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<v Speaker 1>to be a part of, and focus on the ones

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<v Speaker 1>that I run into that I actually know or have

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<v Speaker 1>been acquainted with, and it never ceases to amaze me.

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<v Speaker 1>Michael met Joannis and I and showed us inside, and

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<v Speaker 1>shortly thereafter introduced us to one of the owners of

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<v Speaker 1>Foul Planes, Chase White, a strapping lad with a beard

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<v Speaker 1>long enough to call him esthetically to play with zz

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<v Speaker 1>top now. I shook his hand and introduced my my

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<v Speaker 1>He said, I think I met you about ten years ago.

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<v Speaker 1>Immediately I started thumbing through my minds antiquated roller decks

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<v Speaker 1>that loses more index cards with each passing day, trying

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<v Speaker 1>to figure out where I could have met someone that

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<v Speaker 1>was running a duck hunting operation and a part of

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<v Speaker 1>Kansas that I'd never been in before. I wasn't having

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<v Speaker 1>any luck. Oh oh, was it in my other career,

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<v Speaker 1>the law enforcement one? Then Chase said, I was got

0:13:29.160 --> 0:13:32.840
<v Speaker 1>deer hunters down in southeast Candace and met you. I

0:13:32.840 --> 0:13:36.920
<v Speaker 1>imagined him without the beard, and I remembered him immediately. Well,

0:13:36.920 --> 0:13:39.559
<v Speaker 1>I remember the day that what you were doing, Chase.

0:13:39.760 --> 0:13:42.040
<v Speaker 1>You were in a farm shop building ground blinds out

0:13:42.040 --> 0:13:45.560
<v Speaker 1>of cattle panels and camo tarps. He started laughing, and

0:13:45.640 --> 0:13:48.080
<v Speaker 1>we reminisced about the people that we knew in common,

0:13:48.559 --> 0:13:51.200
<v Speaker 1>Max Griffin and Ethan Bennington, who were guiding for the

0:13:51.240 --> 0:13:55.040
<v Speaker 1>same concern back then. It's always funny to me to

0:13:55.120 --> 0:13:58.000
<v Speaker 1>have those experience and have it bring to mind a

0:13:58.120 --> 0:14:01.480
<v Speaker 1>million things that I wouldn't have ordinarily thought about without

0:14:01.559 --> 0:14:05.720
<v Speaker 1>some sort of trigger. Chasing his family live in Virginia,

0:14:05.760 --> 0:14:09.000
<v Speaker 1>and he and his business partner, Cody Crook, a native Kansas,

0:14:09.160 --> 0:14:11.720
<v Speaker 1>own and operate foul planes in the central part of

0:14:11.760 --> 0:14:15.520
<v Speaker 1>the state. Now, when Chase comes out to Kansas to

0:14:15.600 --> 0:14:17.880
<v Speaker 1>gad he brings his wife, Megan and their little boy

0:14:17.960 --> 0:14:24.240
<v Speaker 1>on the annual pilgrimage. A short time later, John Johnny, Sean, Phil, Jim,

0:14:24.440 --> 0:14:27.240
<v Speaker 1>Carry Brent, not this Brnt, the other Brint, as I

0:14:27.280 --> 0:14:31.400
<v Speaker 1>would refer to him throughout our state. Michelle and Jason

0:14:31.480 --> 0:14:35.480
<v Speaker 1>walked through the door and our camp was complete. The

0:14:35.520 --> 0:14:38.240
<v Speaker 1>Foul Plane staff worked feverously behind the scenes as we

0:14:38.320 --> 0:14:41.800
<v Speaker 1>all got better acquainted with each other. An the collected

0:14:41.840 --> 0:14:46.800
<v Speaker 1>group of humans from Michigan, North Dakota, Missouri, Virginia, Montana, Idaho, Kansas,

0:14:46.840 --> 0:14:49.920
<v Speaker 1>and Arkansas would share a common space for the next

0:14:49.960 --> 0:14:53.560
<v Speaker 1>three days, all seeking the opportunity to bag limits of

0:14:53.640 --> 0:14:58.240
<v Speaker 1>ducks and geese and the company of strangers. I talked

0:14:58.280 --> 0:15:00.160
<v Speaker 1>about how to be a guest at a duck and

0:15:00.360 --> 0:15:04.400
<v Speaker 1>way back on This Country Life episode one nineteen entitled

0:15:04.960 --> 0:15:09.120
<v Speaker 1>Duck Camp Etiquette. Now han't been a waterfowl guide myself

0:15:09.120 --> 0:15:11.600
<v Speaker 1>for twenty six years, I have a pretty good idea

0:15:11.960 --> 0:15:14.200
<v Speaker 1>on what all it entails to put on a hunt

0:15:14.240 --> 0:15:16.800
<v Speaker 1>for clients and what hunters like to know to make

0:15:16.840 --> 0:15:20.840
<v Speaker 1>them more confident guides than the opportunity to be successful,

0:15:21.600 --> 0:15:24.760
<v Speaker 1>I draw all guides can't control the weather or the animals.

0:15:25.400 --> 0:15:28.480
<v Speaker 1>What they can do is provide a clean, comfortable place

0:15:28.520 --> 0:15:32.600
<v Speaker 1>to stay, good food, and communicate them with their guests

0:15:33.200 --> 0:15:35.400
<v Speaker 1>now keeping their hunters up to speed on what's going

0:15:35.440 --> 0:15:38.400
<v Speaker 1>on as far as what's expected of them, where they'll

0:15:38.400 --> 0:15:41.520
<v Speaker 1>be hunting, the environmental conditions they can expect to encounter,

0:15:41.840 --> 0:15:44.080
<v Speaker 1>and the equipment they'll need to keep them comfortable and

0:15:44.120 --> 0:15:48.240
<v Speaker 1>it's important. These were all things that my brother Tim

0:15:48.280 --> 0:15:50.840
<v Speaker 1>and I focused on when we were guiding it. It

0:15:50.920 --> 0:15:53.600
<v Speaker 1>made for a more relaxed atmosphere in camp when the

0:15:53.640 --> 0:15:58.920
<v Speaker 1>only questions left unanswered. We're controlled by mother nature chasing.

0:15:58.920 --> 0:16:01.720
<v Speaker 1>This crew did an excellent job of explaining it all

0:16:01.760 --> 0:16:05.240
<v Speaker 1>in great detail. They also had a grease board posted

0:16:05.440 --> 0:16:08.720
<v Speaker 1>in the mudroom. Now on the grease board all the

0:16:08.760 --> 0:16:12.040
<v Speaker 1>pertinent information for the next day's hunt was posted, what

0:16:12.240 --> 0:16:15.080
<v Speaker 1>time we were leaving, how far we were going, if

0:16:15.120 --> 0:16:18.920
<v Speaker 1>we were hunting ducks, geese or both. Another time that

0:16:19.040 --> 0:16:21.280
<v Speaker 1>was posted would allow you to roll out early with

0:16:21.400 --> 0:16:28.720
<v Speaker 1>the guide crew if you wanted to help set up now.

0:16:28.760 --> 0:16:31.040
<v Speaker 1>For those not versed in what goes into prepping a

0:16:31.040 --> 0:16:33.200
<v Speaker 1>spot for ducks and geese, is a fun way to

0:16:33.280 --> 0:16:37.040
<v Speaker 1>learn the dues and don'ts of decoy placement, the number

0:16:37.040 --> 0:16:40.480
<v Speaker 1>of decoys used, why you use that number, and the

0:16:40.520 --> 0:16:42.640
<v Speaker 1>rest of the ingredients that go into the mix of

0:16:42.680 --> 0:16:46.600
<v Speaker 1>having a safe and successful hunt. When there's nothing left

0:16:46.600 --> 0:16:49.240
<v Speaker 1>to question, all that's left is to get to know

0:16:49.280 --> 0:16:53.760
<v Speaker 1>one another. Where else could such a diversely located group

0:16:53.840 --> 0:16:56.920
<v Speaker 1>of people whose main similarity is a love for the

0:16:56.960 --> 0:17:01.840
<v Speaker 1>outdoors gather together to celebrate a com and passion. It's

0:17:01.880 --> 0:17:05.640
<v Speaker 1>the main investment in measuring the success of the hunt.

0:17:06.000 --> 0:17:08.480
<v Speaker 1>It can't all be about how many ducks and geese

0:17:08.520 --> 0:17:11.400
<v Speaker 1>you bring back to camp. Now, there was a time

0:17:11.440 --> 0:17:13.280
<v Speaker 1>when it was for me, just like some of the

0:17:13.280 --> 0:17:16.679
<v Speaker 1>folks that I visited with in Kansas. Another commonality is

0:17:16.720 --> 0:17:19.240
<v Speaker 1>that with age and maturity comes the peace that goes

0:17:19.320 --> 0:17:22.520
<v Speaker 1>beyond the ducks and geese we bring home. I've seen

0:17:22.520 --> 0:17:24.840
<v Speaker 1>it a million times in people I've guided for who

0:17:24.880 --> 0:17:28.119
<v Speaker 1>bring their sons and daughters and younger family members. The

0:17:28.160 --> 0:17:30.640
<v Speaker 1>youngsters are chomping at the bit to get to the trigger,

0:17:31.280 --> 0:17:33.680
<v Speaker 1>while the older folks kind of set back and enjoy

0:17:33.720 --> 0:17:37.479
<v Speaker 1>the riot. I learned that lesson from a client of

0:17:37.520 --> 0:17:40.320
<v Speaker 1>hours that I only had the pleasure of honting with

0:17:40.520 --> 0:17:44.640
<v Speaker 1>once early in my guiding career. He was from Pennsylvania

0:17:44.880 --> 0:17:49.879
<v Speaker 1>and asked me questions about everything we saw that day. Trees, bushes,

0:17:49.960 --> 0:17:53.280
<v Speaker 1>farm crops, birds, bugs. Everything that he was hearing and

0:17:53.320 --> 0:17:56.359
<v Speaker 1>seeing that he didn't have back in Pennsylvania was of

0:17:56.400 --> 0:17:59.159
<v Speaker 1>interest to it. I didn't know half of what he

0:17:59.280 --> 0:18:01.960
<v Speaker 1>was asking any He seemed a little disappointed that I didn't.

0:18:02.880 --> 0:18:05.240
<v Speaker 1>There were no apps or cell phones then that could

0:18:05.240 --> 0:18:07.240
<v Speaker 1>give you the answers. I was supposed to be his

0:18:07.359 --> 0:18:11.679
<v Speaker 1>Google for Arkansas, and I had failed him miserably. He

0:18:11.760 --> 0:18:14.320
<v Speaker 1>was an older gentleman who, while I only hunted with

0:18:14.400 --> 0:18:17.040
<v Speaker 1>him a few days, he made a lasting impression on me.

0:18:17.119 --> 0:18:20.240
<v Speaker 1>He was confessing more into this hunting trip than just

0:18:20.280 --> 0:18:23.080
<v Speaker 1>how many ducks he could choose. He wanted to know

0:18:23.119 --> 0:18:25.280
<v Speaker 1>how I grew up, what it was like living here

0:18:25.280 --> 0:18:30.000
<v Speaker 1>at anything he could about everything I didn't know. It

0:18:30.040 --> 0:18:33.000
<v Speaker 1>made me see value in my place like I'd never

0:18:33.080 --> 0:18:36.320
<v Speaker 1>seen before, Even though there was no other place on

0:18:36.359 --> 0:18:39.359
<v Speaker 1>this planet that I wanted to be than right there

0:18:39.760 --> 0:18:43.560
<v Speaker 1>where I was, standing beside him in flooded green timber,

0:18:43.720 --> 0:18:48.480
<v Speaker 1>ignorant of the majority of my surroundings. I felt guilty

0:18:48.480 --> 0:18:51.000
<v Speaker 1>for not being able to answer him. I vowed to

0:18:51.119 --> 0:18:53.520
<v Speaker 1>myself to learn more about the things I took for

0:18:53.600 --> 0:18:56.359
<v Speaker 1>granted that nours so important to me. Yet at the

0:18:56.400 --> 0:18:59.840
<v Speaker 1>time were of little consequence. With each trip outside, I

0:19:00.119 --> 0:19:03.080
<v Speaker 1>took note of more of the little things. I looked

0:19:03.080 --> 0:19:05.120
<v Speaker 1>them up, and I asked other folks I was with,

0:19:05.160 --> 0:19:08.320
<v Speaker 1>and I tried to learn something every day. Still do

0:19:09.600 --> 0:19:13.000
<v Speaker 1>that yankee from Pennsylvania taught me to be more invested

0:19:13.040 --> 0:19:15.960
<v Speaker 1>in whatever I was doing, and my returns grew way

0:19:16.040 --> 0:19:20.440
<v Speaker 1>beyond what I brought home to skin and eat. Jannis

0:19:20.440 --> 0:19:22.679
<v Speaker 1>and Chase played ping pong, and the rest of us

0:19:22.760 --> 0:19:25.120
<v Speaker 1>cheered and jeered to the monotonous tone of the back

0:19:25.160 --> 0:19:28.960
<v Speaker 1>and forth between them. And during that hypnotic demonstration of

0:19:29.040 --> 0:19:31.520
<v Speaker 1>hand eye coordination, I learned that I was sitting in

0:19:31.560 --> 0:19:37.040
<v Speaker 1>the company of medical professionals, veterans, and engineers, amongst others.

0:19:38.280 --> 0:19:40.600
<v Speaker 1>Three sets of married folks, a father and a son,

0:19:40.720 --> 0:19:44.720
<v Speaker 1>and one flying solo, all happy to be there, all

0:19:44.760 --> 0:19:48.080
<v Speaker 1>with humility, in varied levels of duck hunting experience, ranging

0:19:48.119 --> 0:19:52.960
<v Speaker 1>from veteran waterfowlers to novices. They shared a genuine interest

0:19:53.000 --> 0:19:57.680
<v Speaker 1>in what mine Giannis's job entailed and asked questions with enthusiasm.

0:19:58.640 --> 0:20:00.960
<v Speaker 1>They all reminded me, every one one of them, with

0:20:01.080 --> 0:20:04.520
<v Speaker 1>a man from Pennsylvania that I'd taken hunting almost forty

0:20:04.600 --> 0:20:08.080
<v Speaker 1>years ago. They wanted to learn everything, and they weren't

0:20:08.119 --> 0:20:10.960
<v Speaker 1>afraid or too vain to ask questions about things they

0:20:10.960 --> 0:20:14.919
<v Speaker 1>didn't know. They were educating themselves to better understand the

0:20:15.040 --> 0:20:18.000
<v Speaker 1>environment in which they were now operating, and in doing so,

0:20:18.560 --> 0:20:20.879
<v Speaker 1>they would see the bigger picture beyond the end of

0:20:20.920 --> 0:20:25.159
<v Speaker 1>their shotgun and what was really going on. People like

0:20:25.240 --> 0:20:28.000
<v Speaker 1>that are my kind of people, regardless of their level

0:20:28.000 --> 0:20:32.760
<v Speaker 1>of ability in anything, but especially the outdoors. Some of

0:20:32.760 --> 0:20:35.119
<v Speaker 1>them could have taken my place in the hosting duties

0:20:35.119 --> 0:20:37.119
<v Speaker 1>and been better at it, I'm sure than I was.

0:20:38.680 --> 0:20:41.359
<v Speaker 1>Always looked for a common denominator when I'm talking to

0:20:41.400 --> 0:20:43.440
<v Speaker 1>a group of folks, but the only one a parent

0:20:43.480 --> 0:20:47.280
<v Speaker 1>it first was I respect for the wild things, And

0:20:47.359 --> 0:20:51.160
<v Speaker 1>once we started talking, all the others rose to the surface,

0:20:51.760 --> 0:20:54.639
<v Speaker 1>and there was a lot of them, a notable difference

0:20:54.680 --> 0:20:56.879
<v Speaker 1>from the eclectic group of folks I sat with for

0:20:56.920 --> 0:21:00.520
<v Speaker 1>three hours in the Dallas Fort Worth Airport, all of

0:21:00.520 --> 0:21:03.160
<v Speaker 1>them close enough to talk, but miles away on their

0:21:03.200 --> 0:21:07.800
<v Speaker 1>phones and laptops. I got home and I unpacked, getting

0:21:07.880 --> 0:21:10.280
<v Speaker 1>my stuff cleaned, washed, and ready to leave again for

0:21:10.320 --> 0:21:13.240
<v Speaker 1>a film we're shooting in a few days. When I

0:21:13.320 --> 0:21:16.080
<v Speaker 1>laid down last night after saying my prayers, my thoughts

0:21:16.160 --> 0:21:18.880
<v Speaker 1>drifted back a day to the new friends I had

0:21:18.920 --> 0:21:22.480
<v Speaker 1>made and wondered if they'd all gotten home yet. I'd

0:21:22.480 --> 0:21:24.760
<v Speaker 1>only known them for a little over seventy two hours,

0:21:24.840 --> 0:21:28.000
<v Speaker 1>but in that time I'd invested in them as much

0:21:28.040 --> 0:21:32.600
<v Speaker 1>and more than they'd invested in me. I knew their kids' names,

0:21:32.960 --> 0:21:35.280
<v Speaker 1>where they went to church, and much of the day

0:21:35.320 --> 0:21:38.600
<v Speaker 1>to day things that make up their lives. Things like

0:21:38.680 --> 0:21:42.480
<v Speaker 1>that matter, and that matter because we each asked the

0:21:42.560 --> 0:21:44.920
<v Speaker 1>other a question, and instead of marking time until we

0:21:44.960 --> 0:21:49.919
<v Speaker 1>could speak again, we listened to the answer. I couldn't

0:21:49.960 --> 0:21:52.000
<v Speaker 1>tell you how many ducks and geese we shot over

0:21:52.000 --> 0:21:54.879
<v Speaker 1>those three days. It wasn't a limit every day, but

0:21:54.960 --> 0:21:57.439
<v Speaker 1>we didn't get skumped by any means, and had we

0:21:57.480 --> 0:21:59.560
<v Speaker 1>been hunting for the skillet, we'd have all went to

0:21:59.560 --> 0:22:03.480
<v Speaker 1>bed foot at night. A year from now, I doubt

0:22:03.560 --> 0:22:05.640
<v Speaker 1>I could pick out the places we hunted have shown

0:22:05.680 --> 0:22:09.600
<v Speaker 1>a picture of them among three others. I guarantee you

0:22:09.600 --> 0:22:12.720
<v Speaker 1>that I'll remember the people, and when I do, I'm

0:22:12.720 --> 0:22:17.560
<v Speaker 1>gonna smile, and that's how I measure success. I can

0:22:17.600 --> 0:22:22.000
<v Speaker 1>only hope that they do the same thank out so

0:22:22.119 --> 0:22:24.240
<v Speaker 1>much for listening to me and my partner, Clay Bowl

0:22:24.280 --> 0:22:27.240
<v Speaker 1>and the Old Bear Grease Channel. And until next week,

0:22:27.280 --> 0:22:30.960
<v Speaker 1>this is Brent Reeves, Sign it off. Y'all be careful,