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It is not that I have not enjoyed camping. I take that back. I enjoyed camping for the first day or two, but three weeks is too long to live in a camper no matter how much a person enjoys camping. Saturday, we made the big move to the new house. There are many benefits, even though it is not completed, not the least of which is sleeping in my own bed. Not being rested for several weeks begins to wear on a person. Sunday morning, we woke up bright and early, and refreshed.

My wife and I each grabbed a cup of coffee and headed for the porch. The porch has a view of some of nature's finest work. Mist was still hanging on the lake below. The intense green color of the rolling hills of grass and trees stretches out into the quiet distance. The only sounds were the birds singing and the cluck of a hen turkey calling her chicks just over the first hill from the house.

As we sat enjoying the sights and sounds of nature around us, a doe with her twin fawns walked across the hill to our left. Another doe, with her single fawn, came out of the timber and went down to the spillway below the dam to get a drink. During our second cup of coffee, two young bucks came out to play on the face of the dam. Two geese took off from somewhere in the far reaches of the lake, honking boisterously as the flew across the water, past the house, and off to some distant feeding ground.

A pair of bluebirds made frequent trips from the lawn to there nearby house feeding their young and hummingbirds flew from the nearby oak tree to the nectar feeders my wife had put out for them. We had lived in the new house for twelve hours or less and already felt like we were home.

I am sure it is going to be an interesting experience. The house is far off the road on the edge of the timber. We will be living with wildlife at its best, as we experienced on our first morning. I am sure we will also have wildlife experiences that will not be so pleasant. With nature, a person has to take the good with the bad. In the past, we have had several experiences in this immediate area.

There was the time the dog caught two skunks in one day. He was not a fast learner. Being sprayed by one skunk would convince anyone with any sense not to tackle a second. The worst part was, I had to give him a ride home.

I parked my tractor near this spot for a couple of week's several years ago during the fall. When I went back to get it, it would not start. On close inspection, I found the air cleaner completely packed with hickory nuts. Some chipmunk was hoping I would leave the tractor there for the winter.

Possibly the worst encounter I had with nature at this spot was the year I was bow hunting late into the January season. I had been chasing one particular giant old buck since October. I knew if I hunted long and hard enough, I would eventually get a shot. It was mid-afternoon and I was hunkered against the cold north wind while making my way to my evening tree stand. The grass was short and the wind polished the snow as I crossed the very spot where the house is now located. When I topped the hill, not twenty feet away stood my buck. There was not even a tall blade of grass to hide behind. He could not wind me, but if I moved, I would be busted. I stood motionless for a few seconds and finally decided to make a quick draw. He spun around and was into the timber before I could get the arrow fully drawn.

The big move has been made. We will take the best and worst nature has to offer and I am sure there will be much more good than bad.[[In-content Ad]]

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