A Little "Yankin" of the Chain

Most of the time I try to write about happy things because I believe humor can be found in most every situation.Today I'm inspired to change the tone a bit.I have too many friends who have forgotten how to live.Some are over 60 like me, and some are not even 40.When I was a kid I thought that when I got "over the hill" I would probably stop going out, and kick back and take it easy.That is what most folks done that I knew. My Dad was getting ready to go on a bear hunt when he passed away. He wasn't about to slow down and hang it up.I have learned, to my amazement, that "slowing down" doesn't have to be the case. For all of you youngsters I have some news for you. When the years seem to be catching up on you, it doesn't have anything to do with your desire to hunt, fish, hike, play football, or anything else.I can almost hear the old codgers saying, " Yeah, but I can't walk very far, or my old legs are too shakey."Another excuse is," My old arthritis is too bad for me to do anything."Some old gassers have told me that I probably didn't have any "ailments" to slow me down.Well, I had to have surgery to have cancer cut out. It took me almost three years to get things half way back to normal. Every morning I have to massage my hands to get them loosened up from arthritis, so I can tie my shoes. I've got a pinched nerve between my shoulder blades that is driving me nuts. I guess packing moose quarters hasn't helped it much.It would be easy to waste space on pain. We all have our share, and when the old carcass gets more years on it, it only gets worse. How you handle it is what's makes the difference.It's all too easy to let pain make you get "old" in your head. It's all too easy to sit back and give in to it. Once you do, it's all over for you. Once you let pain slow you down, it also slows your metabalism, and once that happens everythings comes to a screeching halt. Once you become "inactive", you sign your "death warrent".Too many folks retire, set down, become inactive and are dead in a year. They work all of their lives to be able to kick-back, and the "kicking-back" slows them down. The pounds pack on, the circulation slows down, the muscles began to weaken, and soon life gets soo tired.Life is much too short anyway. Why waste time making excuses on why you have decided to grab the old recliner, instead of getting out and doing what you USED to do?I erased the word "CAN'T" from my vocabulary many years ago. If you are hanging out with a bunch of "can't" people, it's time you had a big change of friends.If you have been reading my posts, you'll soon see than instead of slowing down, I have just rigged up my atv with tracks. In a couple of days I'll be out there hunting wolves with another old geezer who hasn't given up.Right now I'm counting the days until the lakes freeze up so I can get out there and yank those rainbows and silver salmon out of the ice. I can do it and I'm going to do it. Yeah, old "pain" will tag along, but he will have to wait to torment me. I have always been as stubborn as a mule, and I refuse to let this "body" dictate what I'm doing.Today it's zero out side. I am pre-heating my atv and truck. As soon as I'm done with this blog, I'm getting out there and loading the atv on the trailer, in case I may need to go play.I will never croak in a hospital, and the thought of an old-age home scares me worse than a mad grizz. Besides, if I was in a rest home, I would be driving all of the others nuts "talking" about bear hunting.One old codger I know was a truck driver most of his life. I hate to visit with him because all he talks about is a "run" he made 50 years ago. He drives me nuts trying to carry on a conversation. I know that I would be as bad as him if I didn't contain myself.I tell youngsters that I have a 40 year handicap. I am a 23 year old in a 63 year olds body. As far as I'm concerned they can stuff that 40 years. My mind and attitude is still 23. My outlook, goals,and dreams are as eternal as my spirit.As I wrote in my book, "The Wilderness Trail", " My Heart belongs to my Family, My Soul belongs to my GOD, and My SPIRIT belongs to the wind and the wilderness.I, as you, don't know when our number is up, but I'll tell you one thing...I'll have my hunting boots on!