• Mitchell Samaha shared with our writer and I his...

Mitchell Samaha shared with our writer and I his family tradition, going duck hunting with his children.

“Did you know that children who spend their free time outdoors, with nature are less likely to develop mental conditions when they’re older?” he would say. He had a few more of these kinds of arguments, which made me feel like we were interrogating him about his passion.

My intent, and undoubtedly the writer’s as well, was just to chip away at our ignorance on the subject of hunting. When your strongest childhood impression of hunting is Bugs Bunny cartoons, then there’s a good chance you aren’t going to be able to have a conversation with someone who does this to make a living. And here in Louisiana, where the year-round humid climate and brackish water creates a diverse and abundant ecosystem, there are many people who still live off the land in this way. The food they eat is lean, locally produced, non-toxic, non-hormal, non GMO…

Thanks to Mr. Samaha, I learned about a practice that historically has helped to restore wildlife populations, by allowing hunters to pour money into the natural habitat that will allow the animal to grow to hunt-able numbers. “The best way to make sure a species survives,” jokes Samaha, “Is to put it on the hunting list.”