Treetops swayed. Gusts whooshed in the barren branches. Winter moccasins, made of buffalo hide and lined with trade blanket pieces, stepped cautious. Red blanket tails, encrusted with snow, flapped against deerskin leggins. Wolf tracks wove in and around the hardwoods, headed to the River Raisin’s bottomlands and protection from the frigid west wind on that… Continue reading Transforming an Offending Transgression
Tag: Traditional Woodsman
No red, no snood, no gobbler…
Silvery dew drops splashed. Wool leggins whisked north. Elk moccasins whispered along an earthen doe trail. That course led to an overgrown wash and a skinny box elder tree that afforded a commanding view of a tiny break between the cedar trees and open prairie grass. “Gob-obl-obl-obl-obl-obl!” Msko-waagosh, the returned white captive who learned his… Continue reading No red, no snood, no gobbler…
Toss them into the evening fire!
Oak leaves rustled. A fox squirrel bounded to a powder-keg-sized red oak. Dirt and duff flew as the forest tenant dug unaware danger lurked so close. Its bushy tail twitched and flicked, but alas, if found nothing. Next, the squirrel hopped to a dead cedar tree that curved to the earth. The squirrel scampered to… Continue reading Toss them into the evening fire!
Time to move on…
Ten paces grew to thirty. Cedar tree after cedar tree met rejection. A wild turkey scratching bowl came into view, ahead, to the right of the earthen doe trail. “Three, maybe four days old,” the post hunter muttered in a gravely whisper. White-tipped droppings, not a lot just a few, all curled on one end,… Continue reading Time to move on…
“This is one I didn’t count…”
Two blue jays flew across the trail. The first perched high in a red oak, the second lower on a cedar bough. Wool-line moccasins paused. “Swip-it…swip-it…swip-it,” the birds bantered back and forth, in a contented tone. “Kee-honk, kee-honk, yonk, yonk…” Five Canada geese flew overhead. The blue jays swooped to the west, in the direction… Continue reading “This is one I didn’t count…”
Outlining a Hunter Hero’s Daily Life
Lines and creases crisscrossed black ice. God’s artistry drew attention to the fragile, frozen skin covering the water that filled the huckleberry swamp. A light touch of snow dampened brittle oak leaves, hushing the noise of each footfall. “Tu-Tu-Tu-Tu…” an unseen cardinal twittered. Another answered, “Whit, whit, tsu, tsu, tsu, tsu, tsu…” The morning’s course… Continue reading Outlining a Hunter Hero’s Daily Life
A Requiem for the Unfortunate Hen
Sparrows chirped. Cool mist tickled bare skin. A lone crow cawed beyond the hogback ridge. Silver orbs clung to the tips of drooping cedar boughs. Droplets scattered, dislodged by the incidental contact of short cautious steps. Two cardinals bantered, somewhere near the cedar grove. Each footfall squished on the earthen doe trail. An occasional J-shaped… Continue reading A Requiem for the Unfortunate Hen
That Fine May Morn…
Bright green flesh fell. A tree frog landed on its back, splashing in the tiny puddle gathered in a cupped white oak leaf. The interloper squirmed and twitched, stretched and flexed before its left hind leg pushed it over. Rain dripped from cedar bough tips. The mystic visitor sat still, as did an amused Msko-waagosh,… Continue reading That Fine May Morn…