Yesterday I had set up my hootchie in the back yard so I could practice firemaking in wet conditions. I spent quite a while making feather sticks and collecting all the shavings for tinder. However, I just couldn't get it to light.
My younger brother walked out to where I was, so I explained the problem. He looked round the yard and walked over to a tree which was shedding its fibrous bark. He took some of the bark from the side of the tree sheltered from rain, rolled it up into a ball and used it to light my fire first go!
To add insult to injury, the day before, I had been showing him how to make feather sticks. He decided to have a go, and it turns out he's a natural with a knife too! He was able to get longer, thinner feathers on his stick than I was, and I have been whittling for years.
The problem is that he has absolutely no interest in the bush at all.
Has anyone else come across this kind of wasted talent before?
My younger brother walked out to where I was, so I explained the problem. He looked round the yard and walked over to a tree which was shedding its fibrous bark. He took some of the bark from the side of the tree sheltered from rain, rolled it up into a ball and used it to light my fire first go!
To add insult to injury, the day before, I had been showing him how to make feather sticks. He decided to have a go, and it turns out he's a natural with a knife too! He was able to get longer, thinner feathers on his stick than I was, and I have been whittling for years.
The problem is that he has absolutely no interest in the bush at all.
Has anyone else come across this kind of wasted talent before?