LET'S CELEBRATE

When you celebrate something do you do it by yourself, or with others? Now, there are moral victories that we may celebrate alone; like not eating that third piece of pie, maybe it’s shutting off the TV and going for a walk, or resisting whatever temptation you struggle with. Those moral victories are something we typically celebrate alone. What I’m referring to are those “high five” moments. Stuff like job promotions, retirement, scoring the winning point of a game, or harvesting whatever fish or game you’re after. Those are the times when you look for someone to give a high five to. Have you ever tried to give yourself a high five because no one else was around? Well, it’s pretty lame. It’s more like clapping and when you’re clapping by yourself it just seems silly. When it’s time to celebrate, having others around to share it with can make it more enjoyable. At this point you may be saying to yourself, “other people stress me out,” or “I like to do things on my own.” Believe me, I completely understand those statements. I grew up with three brothers, now married, have two sons, and deal with customers daily to solve their problems. So I understand how other people can add stress to your life and how it’s easier to just “do it myself,” or by yourself. However the amount of joy those same people can bring to one’s life far outweighs the stress. So, for now let’s focus on the celebration side of things. Since my childhood celebrations always had other people involved; from being able to start my first campfire, shooting my first deer, marrying my high school sweetheart, to graduating trade school. There was always someone to celebrate with.

 

There came a point in my young adult life that I wanted to boost my deer hunting experience by archery hunting in addition to using a firearm. My philosophy in the particular woods we hunted was that with a firearm “if you could see it, you can hit it.” Archery hunting would be more of a challenge. So, I purchased all the gear needed to archery hunt. I spent countless hours at the range improving my accuracy. Scouted the woods for deer sign and located the best hunting spot. I was going to do it alone. The morning of the first hunt arrived and off to woods I went…by myself. It was going to be a beautiful September morning. The air was cool and fresh. I was in the stand well before sunrise. The sun came up, and the woods came alive. Birds were chirping and squirrels were scampering around. Then it became very quiet. I heard a twig snap behind me, turned around, and there were two whitetail bucks 15 yards away. I drew the bow back, got the larger buck in my sight and let the arrow fly. The arrow found its mark and it was all over. I let out a YAHOO! As the adrenaline rushed through my veins I savored the moment. My first archery hunt was a success! The adrenaline was still flowing as I arrived back to my truck. I was pumped and there was no one to share it with. No one to high five. I tried calling my brother who I knew would love to hear the story but, there was no answer. The adrenaline rush was gone. I missed the camaraderie of celebrating with others. Eventually another hunter came driving down the road and pulled over to look at the deer. He got out of his truck, walked over to me, we high fived and exchanged stories of the morning hunt. That's just how a celebration should be…with someone else.

Gods want us to be happy.

1 Thessalonians 5:16 “Rejoice always.”

Ecclesiastes 3:12-13 “So I concluded there is nothing better than to be happy and enjoy ourselves as long as we can. And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.”