There’s a pair of wool socks hanging from the fireplace tongs, and there’s a box of Christmas lights on the end table waiting to be strung up. There are half-empty pop cans scattered across the room, along with a plate holding remnant scraps of venison jerky. Someone also left a Cabela’s catalog on the sofa and marked their page with a folded-up square of paper toweling. It pretty much rained all day, which explains why there’s a faint aroma of Hoppe’s No. 9 wafting through the living room.

It’s midnight, and I’ve just carried my comforter and pillows to the sofa for what will be a short winter’s nap. Everyone will be up and at it again in less than four hours. At least I’ve got the room to myself. Or so I think.

“He’s snoring again, isn’t he?” says a voice from a dark corner in the room. It’s the camp’s owner, Steve, and he’s reclined in his favorite chair. “Didn’t know anyone else was up,” I reply. “Yeah, he’s buzzing away pretty good in there. No big deal, I guess. It wouldn’t be deer camp without it.”

“Sure wouldn’t,” he says, as we start a conversation that lasts well past midnight. Steve’s a new friend and fellow whitetail fanatic, but amazingly, we don’t talk much about deer or deer hunting during this conversation. We talk about the weather (obligatory fare among grown men), our families, and the prospects of our favorite college and pro football teams.

He tells me about the challenges he’s endured while building a business and raising a family. I tell him about the nature of modern media businesses and how excited my girls are for their upcoming Christmas musical. We go on for nearly an hour when the conversation hits that inevitable pause. There’s no TV or radio playing in the background; just silence.

“You know,” Steve says matter-of-factly, “the older I get, the more I realize the most enjoyable aspects of deer season are centered on the small things — the everyday mundane things that don’t even have to do with hunting at all.”

I just smile and shake my head in agreement, because he is 100% correct.

“Actually, when you think about it, it’s the same with life in general.”

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