Wednesday, August 28, 2013

On Soup and Hunting

It's true. I married a hunter.
I’m not sure how it happened, but I did and I’m pretty happy about that. I mean, I didn’t really “marry a hunter” – I married Doug and it just so happens that he loves to hunt.

Doug’s lifelong love of the wilderness and hunting goes way back before his time with me. He and his two brothers have enjoyed camping and hunting for forever, and they love the outdoors more than anyone I’ve ever known.


I try hard to get past the idea that Doug might bring a beautiful {dead} animal home with him after a weekend of hunting. It makes me super sad for the animal, and in a weird twist of anything that makes sense, it makes me happy for Doug. How confusing is that?

 
I was recently watching a documentary called “HappyPeople – A Year in the Taiga” about a small village in Russia. It’s a beautiful film, and it follows the life of a few hunters/trappers over the course of a year. As I watched the film I was struck by the similarities between the people in the film and Doug and his brothers. The people in the film live entirely off the land - they are one with the planet and it’s the only life they’ve ever known.

I jotted down this quote from the film: “Hunting is the closest you can get to the earth.” The man in the film was making a point about the earth providing food for them, and how grateful he was for that.


Now granted, we don’t have the need to live off the land here in 2013, but in a way I understand Doug’s desire to do so. There’s something very primal about the process, and I know that Doug’s love of the wilderness and being out in nature is what soothes his soul. It is to him what yoga and art are to me.
 

 
So while I would never go hunt and/or kill an animal {unless my daughter’s life depended on it}, any more than Doug would ever be caught on a yoga mat, it’s one of those things I accept because I know it’s important for him.


And because I’m a good wife, I make stuff like hearty soups for him to take hunting to fill his belly - just in case he’s not able to live off the land for the weekend.

 




Item#21 - Me with an artistic tool or craft supply

18 comments:

Cheri said...

does being married to a hunter also mean you have to eat rabbit and venison? I tried venison once - didn't like it at all. Of course, I was 13 and perhaps a bit biased....

Deb @ PaperTurtle said...

Being married to a hunter (for me anyway) means I have a little time to myself once in a while when Doug goes away for the weekend. It never means I have to eat whatever he might bring home. ;o) In fact, I am not a fan of game meat and have only tried to eat venison a couple of times in the 10 years we've been together. The last time I tried it I had a really hard time swallowing it. :o\

Fortunately Doug doesn't bring home rabbits or other small game - only deer and elk.

Susi said...

I could never kill an animal either,for one I'm not a meat eater. Only seafood for me. While I enjoy my husbands company, I could use a little of that me time as we also work together. He doesn't hunt but once in awhile he goes to the Dragon to ride his Harley.

Beverly said...

Love your food photography. I think there is something very beautiful about living off the land and very beautiful about some alone time.

Audrey said...

Deb, that picture of you is adorable!

helena said...

love your philosophy and I'm intrigued by the figure on the fridge behind you on the right of the photo

Stephanie @ La Dolce Vita said...

I couldn't eat it either. But thankfully, he wouldn't hunt it to begin with. No, I like thinking of my meat coming from some happy little meat factory in the sky, thank you very much.

Ruth said...

I love a nice bit of venison!
Lovely photo of you. x

Irene said...

I would definitely try whatever Doug brought home. I have eaten deer meat sausage and tamales. Oh sooo good.

Jo said...

I grew up in a house where my brother liked to hunt and I totally get what you mean by feeling sad for the animal at the same time as feeling happy for the hunter. That soup looks amazing! x

Fiona@Staring at the Sea said...

I'd much rather have that delicious looking soup that any game that found its way home after the hunt. Having grown up in the country, pheasants were a regular sight hanging in our garage, although not something I much cared to eat.

Anonymous said...

Love that picture of you and that soup looks yummy

Lisa-Jane said...

Sometimes I wish we lived somewhere that my DH could get out and hunt like that, I really think he would love it. I just painted my toes teal to make sure the varnish was still okay in readiness for September :-)

Margaret said...

Your soup looks good. I rarely eat meat, but I do think there is an argument to make for hunting. The animal you hunt yourself had a better quality of life than a factory-raised cow, and without predators, deer and elk can over breed and starve for lack of enough food for all. Also, when you are responsible for catching your own food, you have to take some responsibility for the fact that it once lived, that all of it should be used. It was not born a hamburger.

Amy said...

I want to start by saying what a lovely post this is - it really celebrates your differences in such a positive manner. TE and I are very different and I think accepting our contrasting interests and personalities helps to make our relationship stronger.

BUT, my main point today is to congratulate you one such a fantastic self portrait for the Scavenger Hunt ... this is where I am smiling to myself - I took many, many,many shots of myself using a knife with EXACTLY the same intention ... except mine all looked like I had sausages as fingers so I ditched the idea. I know you are a little tongue in cheek but you have really tickled my fancy today! :)

Maria Ontiveros said...

I agree with everything Amy said - I love that picture of you. I love duck but have trouble with a lot of other game (boar, venison, rabbit are all a little too gamey for me). I've actually eaten ostrich and really liked it! Somehow I was happy by the end of the post to find you weren't making Bambi stew.
rinda

Abi said...

I like the words you have chosen for this post. There is something strangely poetic about learning to live off the land.

Your photo with an "artistic tool" made me laugh a lot!

Karen said...

Like many others, I love your self-portrait. I haven't gotten around to that yet. We have some venison hot dogs in our freezer that Tracy's cousin gave us this summer. He assures us we'll love them. We should get them out while it's still grilling weather.

Your soup looks yummy! In the many years when Tracy and his friend went backpacking in the mountains, I always had a hearty meal ready when they returned. Now his wife and I tag along (staying in a motel and living it up) while they hike, so we treat them to dinner on the way home.

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