Women in the Field
Bobbie Jo Wallace Parsons credits a high
school English teacher with encouraging her
to write and to study journalism at the
University of Alabama. After graduation, her
love for writing was fostered while working as a reporter at a weekly newspaper in
Livingston, Alabama in the late 70’s. Keeping
a journal of her hunting experiences came
quite naturally. Married for 50 years to her
college sweetheart, Jim, they are the parents
of two grown sons Jimbo and Jason. They
currently reside in Shelby County, Alabama.
(L) Carolyn Ray and (R) Bobbie Parsons
hunt South Africa. A magnificent Kudu
harvested by Carolyn.
Bobbie Parsons
M
y passion for hunting hit
me like the proverbial tornado. One day i wasn’t
a hunter and the next i
could hardly wait to get
started. Maybe all those years of watching my husband Jim leave for weekend
deer hunting trips or his excitement getting ready for the fall opening of dove
season finally “clicked” and i realized i
was missing out on a lot of good stuff! Or
maybe somewhere deep in my subconscious the pleasant childhood memories
of occasional alabama squirrel hunts
with my grandmother in the woods surrounding her house re-connected.
there seem to be so many ideas and
thoughts running around in my head; so
many hints and tips i want to share with
you about hunting and the hunting experience that i can’t seem to “narrow” my
focus for this article. instead of fighting
it, i just decided to go with it and throw
out some thoughts and lessons i have
learned these past 30 years.
tice your shooting. i don’t even think it is
necessary in the beginning to go hunting
in the extreme elements (i.e. cold, rain,
snow). that can come later.
Jim says he has searched the hunting
laws and cannot find it written anywhere
that we must be uncomfortable and miserable. i think it is especially important
to make it fun and comfortable for a
it causes me discomfort when women beginner.
tell me they could never do what i have
done in the hunting arena. OF COUrSe Once the “hunting bug” bit me i never
YOU Can!! and probably do it better minded tromping through three foot
than i. as my older son Jimbo says, “it snow drifts for a shot at a bugling elk or
sitting in a ladder stand in a steady rain
ain’t rocket surgery.”
during the rut waiting for that love struck
So i guess i am saying it doesn’t matter You only need the desire to get our there doe-chasing whitetail buck to come bustin the first place and the willingness to ing through the woods. those conditions
how you got here-just that you did!
learn about your gun or bow and prac- just add another dimension to your hunt18 | BLAZE | Fall/Winter 2015
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