Yes I said it, my father cursed me...He has cursed me never to go into the woods without looking for a "lighter stump". And if you think you have found one, it is imperative that you take out a knife and skin the wood exposing the inside and smell to see if it is "fat" or not. For those of you who don't know what a lighter stump is, it is a pine stump or log that has rotted down to the center or "heart" and now it has a high concentration of pitch in it so that it catches fire quickly and burns very hot. (Fat lightwood has more pitch) Now I know that you are wondering "what in the world are you talking about?" Let me try to explain.
When my dad and I used to go into the woods together to hunt, we would never come out empty handed. We heated our house with wood, so we had to bring out any lightwood we found. Now let me tell you, we had so much accumulated at the house by the time we stopped heating with wood that you could have burned the world, but did that keep my dad from getting more?...NOOO! You can never have enough. Well, I don't heat my house with wood, never have, but I still bring out stumps and logs every chance I get and make a mental note wherever I see a stump. And yes, I too have enough stored here to burn down a city block. Just today I was clearing lanes in the woods and found two stumps...and yes daddy, I took the machete, skinned the outside and checked for "fatness". (It was fat by the way)
This curse has caused me to be the brunt of jokes and even gotten me close to getting a ticket. My friends will laugh at me when I come out from hunting with the 4 wheeler loaded down with logs of lightwood. Once, while I was squirrel hunting, I picked up a log and took it to my car. When I got close, I put it down with the thought of going back and getting it when I put my gun up. Once I got to the car, a game warden was there and questioned me about what I had in my hand that I dropped. I tried to tell him but he did not believe me. I had to take him into the woods and show him...and yes I picked it up and brought it out. You see, I still would not pass the chance to bring it out like my dad taught me no matter what.
I have taken the pleasure here of late teaching my son how to start fires in our fire pit I was given for Father's Day. Every time I split some lightwood for kindling, I make the boys smell it. I have taught him how to start with a few sticks of lightwood on top of some newspaper, topped with some kindling and larger wood. (see daddy, I was paying attention) We all delight when the fire starts roaring and catching up. Just one more thing that I have enjoyed passing down to my children that my dad taught me.
And when my boys and I start going in the woods together more often, I will teach them to find a lightwood stump by sight and then to skin it and see if it is fat or not...and of course they will have to bring it out of the woods. :)
When my dad and I used to go into the woods together to hunt, we would never come out empty handed. We heated our house with wood, so we had to bring out any lightwood we found. Now let me tell you, we had so much accumulated at the house by the time we stopped heating with wood that you could have burned the world, but did that keep my dad from getting more?...NOOO! You can never have enough. Well, I don't heat my house with wood, never have, but I still bring out stumps and logs every chance I get and make a mental note wherever I see a stump. And yes, I too have enough stored here to burn down a city block. Just today I was clearing lanes in the woods and found two stumps...and yes daddy, I took the machete, skinned the outside and checked for "fatness". (It was fat by the way)
This curse has caused me to be the brunt of jokes and even gotten me close to getting a ticket. My friends will laugh at me when I come out from hunting with the 4 wheeler loaded down with logs of lightwood. Once, while I was squirrel hunting, I picked up a log and took it to my car. When I got close, I put it down with the thought of going back and getting it when I put my gun up. Once I got to the car, a game warden was there and questioned me about what I had in my hand that I dropped. I tried to tell him but he did not believe me. I had to take him into the woods and show him...and yes I picked it up and brought it out. You see, I still would not pass the chance to bring it out like my dad taught me no matter what.
I have taken the pleasure here of late teaching my son how to start fires in our fire pit I was given for Father's Day. Every time I split some lightwood for kindling, I make the boys smell it. I have taught him how to start with a few sticks of lightwood on top of some newspaper, topped with some kindling and larger wood. (see daddy, I was paying attention) We all delight when the fire starts roaring and catching up. Just one more thing that I have enjoyed passing down to my children that my dad taught me.
And when my boys and I start going in the woods together more often, I will teach them to find a lightwood stump by sight and then to skin it and see if it is fat or not...and of course they will have to bring it out of the woods. :)
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