Lessons From an Old Coonhunter

When I was just a lad of a boy, I got to know an old hillbilly who was, in his own way, a genius.
He didn't have a lot of education, at least the academic kind, but in his element, he was a brilliant man.

He was a woodsman without peer who could find his way unerringly out of the deepest holler on a night when the stars weren't shining. I never saw him lost.

He was a dead shot with a rifle, making it a point to shoot squirrels through the eye so as not to ruin any of the meat.

He kept his old double bitted axe honed down sharp enough to shave with, and could fell a tree with incredible precision, dropping it exactly where he wanted it, with every chip looking like it had come out of a cookie cutter.

But perhaps his greatest area of genius was in training coon dogs. Old Donnie hardly ever got out of his zip code, but well known dog men and coon hunting legends from all over the country found their way to the old house up on Peckerwood Flat where he lived to lay their money down and drive away with another winner trained by the old man from the forks of the creek. Many a young hound born and trained there went on to become famous in the hands of competition hunters and big time promoters.

The old boy wasn't all that sociable, and was so opinionated that he was something of a loner, but I was determined to learn from him, and kept on until I made a friend out of him.

He taught me a lot of things about coon dogs, and quite a little bit about life as well.

One thing he told me over and over again was that if I wanted my hounds to be straight--that is, to run coon and coon only--DON'T hunt them with a bunch of trashy dogs.

"If you want him to be straight, keep him in straight company."
That advice has served me well in training coon dogs as well as in life.
Solomon said in Proverbs 13:20:
He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.

A good friend, Brother Ron Wofford, is fond of saying, "Show me your friends, and I will show you your future."

Sadly, I have seen some good friends start running with the wrong crowd, and today they're treeing possums and catching skunks.

You are not only known by the company you keep, but you are made by the company you keep.
Influence is a powerful thing...consider carefully who you choose to align yourself with.

They will help shape your destiny.