Gracie Earns Her Keep Yet Again

[Phil C]

What a great day.
Dean you have proven once again, Its not always the number of birds, its the magical moments such as the one you experienced with Grace that day.
The hunt, the birdiness followed by a point. The dead silence just before the flush followed by the sudden beating of the wings, the instinctive swing on the bird followed by the roar of the shotgun.
The smell of burned powder blended with the smell of the woods we are hunting.
Its about that moment after the shot when we have a dozen thoughts running through our heads. How did I miss? Did I hit the bird?
The combing the area where we felt the bird would have gone down. The encouragement we give our dogs. Find em up, bird in here.
The excitement of the search that intensifies with our commands and their 6th sense.
The decision and disappointment when we finally feel the need to move on.
Its that memory that will be forever gladly burned in our minds, the moment everything changes and a rush of pride in our dog…our 4 legged partner suddenly appears with the lost bird in its mouth.