Trip to the taxidermist with my sons almost had heavenly feel to it
By Steve Rogers — Into the Outdoors
There are those moments in life that we all look forward to. This past Monday afternoon I was sitting at home when the phone rang. I don’t know what it is like in your house, but around here when the phone rings I often think to myself, “Now what?” My wife looked at the caller ID, laughed and tossed the phone to me. It was one of the best phone calls a guy can ever have. It was my taxidermist telling me that my deer mount was finished!
The next morning the boys and I piled into the Tahoe to take off when I realized that I better empty out the back end and take the third row of seats out. Now, maybe that is wishful thinking on my part, but it was a nice deer. A few minutes later we were off and Luke and Cody were chirping about all the cools things they were going to see. These two love to go to the taxidermist and for the first time in months they didn’t whine about going for a car ride that lasted more than 5 seconds.
Thirty minutes later we were pulling into the driveway. Both large overhead shop doors were wide open and I could see all of the deer racks and tanned hides hanging from the ceiling. The place is awesome. Cody walked right up to a pair of bison mounts and stood with his mouth wide open and pointed. Yes, they are huge. I don’t know what kind of house the owner of those two mounts lives in, but I guarantee it’s bigger than mine.
Every single guy that walks into the taxidermist shop casually but consciously looks at all the other mounts and antlers lying around. The underlying tone of course is to see if our trophy is the biggest one or did someone else beat us. So usually after I spot a dozen or so smaller bucks than the one I’ve brought in, I quit looking.
Cliff met me at the entrance to his inner sanctum. This is the room that my boys love the most. The room is decorated in rustic cabin décor and every square inch of wall space is covered with some sort of fish, bird, deer, bobcat, and anything else you can imagine. Of course, he always places the product to be picked up right in the middle of this amazing wildlife array.
I’m not sure if there actually was a spotlight gleaming across my mount and angelic music heralding through the room or if that was all just in my mind, but either way, I was impressed. It has been 6 months since I last saw this deer and being reunited is always a great moment. Cliff, of course, loves it when his clients have that stupid grin on their face. It makes it easier to collect the balance due.
We talked for awhile about the past memories, the new season that will be creeping upon us soon and of course the promise to bring in another trophy this year. After we parted ways, and yes it is a good thing I took out the third row of seats, I recalled that cold November morning in 2009 that yielded such a fine animal. The drive home was full of contemplation of a day when everything came together.
I now sit here and write this column as the latest addition to my living room keeps watch. As summer days linger on and temperatures soar I can’t help but think about fall colors, crisp days and monster whitetails. I know that many of you are also getting that special “itch” that leads to hanging more stands, flipping through catalogs, and practicing with your bow. ut, until October 1st arrives, enjoy each day of your summer and spend most of it in the outdoors.
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