Passing on traditions..

In "Letter to a Grandson," one of his Lower Forty columns published in Field & Stream magazine, Corey Ford tells of a man writing a letter to his newborn grandson that was to be read when the boy turned 16.

The old man describes some of his guns and rods he wishes the boy to have when he reaches this age. "More important," the man writes, "I am leaving you some memories."

Among these memories are, "The smells that men like to remember — pipe smoke and boot dubbing and Hoppe's No. 9, and fly dope on a red bandanna handkerchief, and wet dog fur steaming by the fire, and the smell of leather that is more like a taste, and the before-breakfast smell of coffee boiling and bacon frying, and the smell of a cottonmouth — the smell of fear — and the fall smells of sweet fern and rotting apples and burnt powder in the frosty air."


I tend to favor traditional things, in regard to hunting gear in particular.
I favor wool over synthetics, waxed cotton over nylon, real leather over plastic. I think that traditions are also important to pass on. They provide a link to our past, and respect for those who have passed on their traditions to us.
I eschew modern convenience, and only apply electronics to my dogs to enhance their safety..
In my humble opinion, I was born about 40 years too late.