First Hunting Experience

The first time I went hunting I had no idea what I was doing.  I was sitting in a ditch covered by weeds taller than me and next to me were two good friends, both experienced, and I was holding a loaded shotgun ready to shoot.  I remember focusing so hard on not shooting my friends that I would hesitate and let birds go by.  After a few minutes passed we all separated in the field I was able to focus on shooting the doves and not my friends.  Once I took my first shot I was immediately hooked.  I loved everything about it and even though I was missing the damn birds it didn't matter.  Hitting a dove is not an easy task.  Doves fly in bizarre erratic patterns, and somehow they know when you shoot at them and try to dodge the shot flying at them. 

 As the day progressed and my shooting got more and more accurate I inevitably hit my first dove.  Excitement and adrenalin filled my body as I rushed over to collect my first kill while my friends cheered.  When I got to the dove my body was filled with a feeling of unexpected sorrow as I noticed the dove was only wounded.  This is the first experience I’ve had that I can think of where I was filled with so many different emotions; nervous to shoot for the first time, excited to shoot for the first time, pumping adrenaline because of shooting for the first time and even sadness for seeing a dove wounded because of me.  So like any ethical hunter I quickly put it out of its misery in a humane way.  Luckily my feeling of sorrow was quickly diminished when two more doves flew my way and I got a double –shooting two birds back to back—all in all it was an amazing day.  Hunting is the only sport I have ever done that gave me a rush of so many different emotions, I guess that’s one reason I love it so much.