Tuesday, July 21, 2009

my daily bread

Today in my yard, I went looking for rabbits with a .22 rifle in my hands. I was determined to get myself and my dog a good meal. As I kept walking I saw a massive bird fly away from where it was landed in front of me. I didn't think much of it, and kept walking. As I came near to where it was landed, I saw a rabbit. I continued getting close to it, preparing to shoot it. And I decided it was too small. I didn't want to kill something who hadn't been on the earth a single year. So instead I just kept walking towards it to see when it would run, but it never did. And then I made the connection that the bird had attacked this rabbit. I went up to it, and it had two or three wounds. It's back legs and front left leg were completely unusable. It was definitely afraid of me as it tried to hop away, failing at every attempt. It couldn't even stand up. So I decided to pick it up and bring it back to the house. I brought it inside so the dog could smell it, but Jesse tried instantly to eat it and then repeated this effort again and again. Part of me was happy, and part of me wanted to kick her. So I brought the rabbit back outside. I was still thinking about trying to save it, but there was too much damage. So I decided to kill it. Now I was just thinking about the means of how I was going to kill it. I only have one .22 bullet, so that was out of the picture. I grabbed my knife, and was thinking about it, and then I stopped thinking. I just swung. The head came off, and the rabbit was dead. I skinned it and cut off all its feet. I took its guts out, which my dog ate in two or three bites. I read online earlier that it's really healthy for her. I cleaned the carcass, and it is in my refrigerator ready to be cooked tomorrow. the hide is being tanned. The feet are being preserved. I just got done boiling the skull to properly preserve it, which will appropriately be around my neck tomorrow in the form of a necklace. I completely honor this rabbit, and thank God for his provision. I recognize that it is the creation of God, therefore I treat it with respect.

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