And so we will.  My good friends Rick Browning and Mike Dean from West Virginia, and good friend Joe Nemecek from Oklahoma and I head west for our annual adventure.  Horses in tow and more “stuff” than you need as we make this 1700 mile trek to New Mexico.  Rick and I have made this trip together for the last five years.  Last year was Mike’s first time with us, and Joe will make his Maiden Voyage on an all out bow hunting, horse back riding, sleeping on the ground, eating spam for 10 days, drinking creek water, freezing all night, muscle cramping Elk hunt.  And we think this is fun. We love it.  I’ll bring back plenty of pics for future posts.  A couple “notes” about these guys.  Rick and Mike have to use my Ohio address when they apply for the license as New Mexico won’t allow people from West Virginia in their state.  And Joe Nemecek never does anything but sit behind a desk, so, I am anxious to see how he gets along climbing those mountains.  We’ll see.

It was in 1985 when my great uncle Elmer Lamb began to talk once again about his favorite place and time on earth.  I had heard all of this before, but I was always ready to hear it again.  The “place” was Colorado and the “time” was Elk season.  That day, after the stories were told,  I asked Elmer and his son Herbert, When can we go?  We decided right then that the next year we would all go to Colorado.  And we did. Long story short, we didn’t get any Elk on that trip.  Some never even saw an Elk.   But, it has always been and I suppose  always will be great memories for me.  Colorado was everything that Elmer had described….and more.  Uncle Elmer and Herbert are both gone now but I always think of them as I gather my things together for another trip to hunt Elk in Colorado.  I think this year will make about 15 times I have went to the Rocky Mountains in pursuit of Elk.  This year I am going to New Mexico.  After the long drive with my friends Rick, Mike, and Joe, when I mount my horse “Flicka” and start up the trail into the basin ahead of me, I will remember how these adventures got started, and those who took the time to show me some of God’s most beautiful creation.

Are you like me?  Just like to get away sometimes and think?  This has been a busy day for me tracking the progress of the projects I have going on right now.  Talking with Debbie at CRT about my upcoming DVD that will be going out to TV shows around the country, Jared and I have talked and text all day about the artwork for my new CD.  Not to mention several text to Rodney in Huntington about my lost sample DVD.  Actually though, I really enjoy this stuff.  It’s all a part of being an artist.  Being creative and seeing your work finally come together and you eventually will enjoy putting the first one in some ones hand.  Hopefully, the “first” of many!  

Theresa holds the newest member of the family!  Our new great-nephew CARTER was born yesterday.  Erica and Doyle are the proud parents.  Theresa’s brother Tim and sister-in-law Anita are first time grandparents. Carter makes the fifth generation.  

How do you succeed in Life?  One key word is preparation.  I’ve thought about this a lot in the last few days as I “prepare” for my upcoming Elk hunting trip to New Mexico with my friends.  Actually, I am far less prepared this year than I have ever been before.  There are different reasons for this.  The first one is I am just being lazy about it.  Second, I have been pre-occupied.  I have been so busy with recording, traveling, making videos, ect. that I have neglected my preparation for this trip.  Pictured here I am finishing a 4 mile ride on my horse “Tucker.”  If I fail to get an Elk on this trip it will probably be due to my lack of preparation.  It will be my fault.  

Be sure to not fail to “prepare” for eternity.  We can get too busy in everyday life to look ahead and realize we won’t live forever on this earth.  By excepting Jesus as our Savior we can make our preparation to go to Heaven.  When we do this, we have really begun to succeed.