Bows and Knives

I enjoy sharing the experiences of the outdoors with my grandkids. I took my grandson Luke down to Coffee Pot Trail. While hiking along the river, I pointed out a few fresh moose tracks and some moose sign (poop). We discussed the difference between moose and elk sign. A few days later, Luke accompanied his mother and a friend on an afternoon fishing excursion. Upon their return, Heather said that her son correctly identified moose tracks and sign without being prompted.

Since Luke was showing an interest in the outdoors, I provided him a small bow and set up a target in the backyard. It didn’t take long for him to successfully impale the target from 20 feet. He was genuinely excited with his success.

It was time to teach this almost-five-year-old how to use a knife. I raided my stash of new knives that I keep for such occasions. Luke was surprised when I produced a 3 inch pocket knife. We began with a conversation about knife safety and practiced opening and closing the knife. We progressed to the proper technique of skinning bark from a stick, always cutting away from your body.  When we were through, he returned his knife to me for safe keeping.

The following day Luke and I went to the bank.  As we arrived he insisted on returning home to retrieve his knife. He wanted to show it to his friends at the bank, who always welcome him with smiles, kind words and a sucker.  After a quick trip to the cabin, he performed his knife handling skills and received praise and a sucker from the attentive audience. He was beaming with pride as we left.

Teaching outdoor skills provides youth with an alternative to being continually plugged into electronics. You can teach the next generation that knives, bows or guns are useful tools to be used safely and with respect.