Progress Backwards!

This turkey was one of my proudest moments as a hunter.

I know the title of this post does not make sense.  But sometimes we more or less progress backwards.  Most of us try something, eventually we become proficient, and then we may grow bored.

As a hunter I first progressed to better tools, but as my skills improved I eventually moved to simpler more primitive tools.  I soon found more joy in an occasional success with the simpler tools than with the relative ease of hunting with sophisticated tools.

I'll bet you can relate to some part of my own very generalized Progress Backwards List. 

Progress:

1. Age 8 shooting birds, bugs, lizards... with a BB gun.
2. Age 12 shooting squirrels, rabbits, crows.... with a .22 rimfire.
3. Age 15 shooting quail with a 20 gauge...
4. Age 18 hunting (seldom shooting) whitetail and varmints with .243 
5. Age 23 married, education, work, work, work... not much hunting...
6. Age 35 more settled with kids... doing some hunting again.

Backwards:

1. Age 39 a fairly good whitetail hunter looking for more I try bow hunting.
2. Age 40 try hunting small game with the bow during whitetail season.
3. Age 41 frustrated with loosing/chasing small game arrows on whitetail hunts.
4. Age 43 love the close encounters challenge of the bow seldom take a rifle anymore.
5. Age 50 fairly settled in as a bowhunter never take the rifle anymore.
6. Age 55 "discover" the slingshot and luckily harvest two quail while whitetail hunting.
7. Age 56 I can't hit anything, but this slingshot is so simple and somewhat addictive.
8. Age 57 I can sometimes hit my target with my handy little wrist rocket.
9. Age 59 don't tell anyone but I'm having more fun with a slingshot than anything.
10. Age 60 now shooting a more traditional slingshot and leaving the wrist rocket at home.

That was a few years ago, but I keep loving shooting and hunting with a slingshot and bow.