Happy Birthday to me ◇ I killed my first animal, for subsistance, and yes it hurt!

Be warned, this is sort of, a bit like a re-post from our instagram account which can be found under the tag @mugwortexpress. This is an account dedicated entirely to the building of our Neo-trbal Vilage, in the north east united states. If you're interested in joining the build and in creating a life connected to the natural world, please contact me here.

I want to hunt because I want my family and I to eat the cleanest meat possible.

There is so much more to learn in the world of re-wilding. Hunting is one of them, but shooting an animal isn't the only thing you need to know before heading to the plate!

Processing an animal is a whole other thing, and depending on the season, it can be time sensitive.

Last year I picked up a roadkill squirel to teach myself some of this process. It may seem insignificant to some of you, but for first timers, skinning an animal can be very emotional.

This year, for my birthday, I killed my first animal.

Did it hurt? Shit yeah of course, it was fuckin gruesome too... It hurt, and I held my hand on this beautiful rabbit, with all the greatfullness and deep compassion I had, until its little heart stopped beating. I had never taken a knife to any living thing before!

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I can still hear the sound it made in that moment of no return!

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This rabbit taught me a life lesson, a valuable one I had been looking for, fed a few people and gave us one more push forward in the world of self reliance and rewilding.

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I am working on keeping the skin, it is another skill I am interested in learning!

Reconnecting with our human instinct in this way, is like a natural medecine. You must deal with your emotions, unlike picking up a package of your favorite meat off the supermarket shelf! It is very powerful!!!

I might add that knowing how to turn an animal into food is, in my eyes, so much more important than worrying which side of the political spectrum will be in office.

Whatever your beliefs are try to keep moving forward. Keep pushing your dreams and goals, because all the "noise" is created to distract you from being the real you.