Why I Like To Live In The Bush

by Mike
(Canada)

Two dogs and a man

Hello Everyone

My name is Mike and I would like to welcome all of you to our first public speaking exercise.

I am here to talk to you about the many aspects of country living and why I choose to live it. We live on 25 acres with trees. I am very nervous so if you would bear with me it would be much appreciated. If I go beyond five minutes feel free to stop me.

There are so many reasons why I choose living in the bush. I feel very fortunate to live where I live.

I like privacy which lets me live a hillbilly type lifestyle of sorts. I have good neighbors so I don't worry much knowing that they are there if needed. I am very fortunate to have a spouse that enjoys the outdoors as much as myself.

I feel that the peace and tranquility is paramount to our existence. I find it very healthy and helps me cope with daily issues that may arise.

Living in natures backyard is something so very special and beautiful as we all know. To see wildlife up close in their own natural habitat is fascinating. I have encountered all kinds of wildlife; moose on the rare occasion, plenty of deer, of course the bear (which I would prefer to see at a distance) but since we have to share the habitat, we have had a few close encounters.

One bear, for instance, killed all our chickens and came a little too close for comfort. That bear no longer shares our backyard. I had a very rare encounter with a rattlesnake a few years back. Not a very common sight in our neighborhood.

We are very fortunate to have an abundance of butterflies, lizards, bees and other insects to study, along with many different birds; grouse, quail, wild turkeys, hawks, owls, eagles to name a few.

We spend many hours outside (outside peeing is encouraged) winter and summer.

Winter time we spend hours cross country skiing, snowshoeing and cooking over the open fire. Willow, maple or alder are the best wood to make a bed of coals.

One of many other chores that have to be done in the bush is the gathering of firewood. It heats you three times;

1) when you cut the tree down

2) when you split and stack

3) when you burn it.

There are many good things about living where I live. Hiking and gardening in the summer, and like I mentioned, winter cross country skiing and snowshoeing.

With all of the positives about country living there are the negative aspects we have to deal with.

Summertime I'm always worried about low water table and the threat of wildfires here, natural or human caused. More often worried about the human factor than natural. We capture as much water as possible.

Wintertime brings the burden of snow removal from all the roofs of the outbuildings - greenhouse, powershack to name a few. One of the most stressful times of winter we face living in the bush is having to get to town in bad weather conditions. I am convinced the good outweigh the bad.

I would take this opportunity to thank you all for coming out and hearing my speech. In closing I would like to leave you with quote from Walter Cronkite;