I have not written much in the days of late, and it has made me a bit anxious, unsettled, and well...lost. A writer can get that way, or so I have heard, and it is something that I have tried to teach myself to avoid.
Perhaps you are familiar with the feeling?
But as many of you know, sometimes other work, and the unavoidable responsibilities of everyday life, can seriously impede a call to fun and greater duty.
So, I thought I might start again by traveling back in time to a place where it all started for me, at least in the writing department.
The photograph above is of the front cover of the first short story that I ever completed. It resulted from a special assignment by my 7th grade English teacher, who must have suspected that I was somehow ready for it. He was a good man, and a great encourager of the written word. I owe him a great debt of gratitude for nudging me in the right direction.
I could not tell you why I have kept it after all of these years, nor how I have managed not to lose it through so many miles and so many moves. I did not even know where it was until just the other day. Hunting around for something else in a long forgotten drawer, I looked down, and there it be.
You could say that finding it was a bit of a shock to my system, and it made me sit, as a wave of images came flooding in.
Traveling back in time can be quite an adventure all to itself, and sometimes, one must prepare. I have not reread it in full quite yet, as if, I suppose, I am not completely ready. But I can say that I remember quite a bit of the story, as if I wrote it just yesterday. That is a surprise, considering it has been almost five decades since it was fresh on my mind.
I won't bore you with too much of the early literary ramblings of a twelve year old, but I can tell you that it had everything to do with wilderness adventure, survival, and an out of control and vindictive wolverine.
Imagine that...
I would be remiss if I did not mention that my story was no doubt modeled after the books of Jim Kjelgaard, of "Big Red" fame. He was a great inspiration to me, and to countless boys everywhere.
But that...is another story.
For now all I can say is thanks, to the teachers and writers before me, and those yet to come.
And it's very nice to come home, to memories past, and words, and that big, big outdoor world!
By Michael Patrick McCarty
Active Member Outdoor Writers Association of America, and An Ambassador For 
Come On In - The Water Is Wild, and Free...
“Time is the hunter of all men, and no one knows this better than we do. That knowledge gives us perspective, and direction. A hunter is never lost in this great big world, not in life, nor even in death…" - Michael Patrick McCarty
The Wolverine. The Native Americans Called him "Carcajou”, or Mountain Devil.
Image Source https://pixabay.com/en/animal-world-mammal-nature-animal-3065318/