hbeaton
Sr. Member
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2005
- Messages
- 359
- Reaction score
- 808
- Golden Thread
- 0
- Location
- Virginia Beach, VA
- Detector(s) used
- Minelab E-Trac
My "find"
All too often the things that make us truly happy end up taking a back seat to the rest of our daily activities. It's as if we are trying to get the other things done in order to get those last few moments of the day to just...enjoy. Many times, we never finish those other things and...well...we end up not happy.
I know, we have to do those other things in order to understand what really makes us happy, however, for this metal detectorist, life went and got itself in a big damn hurry and for the best, yet I really miss one of the few things that really made me happy: metal detecting.
Previously, I hit the fields, the parks, the barns, anywhere that I felt I might find something. The experience of finding a good spot, researching at the library to find other suitable areas, the thrill of the hunt, the agony of "heart stoppers", the rich history that many finds had and the connection to yesteryear that my finds put me in touch with, all of that meant a great deal to me. I could come home with a bag of trash for the day's take, be wet and dirty but have a smile a mile long because I was truly happy with this activity. I would come home, get a shower, dust of my finds, recycle trash, and hop online to see what others had found or to post my finds. Similar to a kid in a candy store, I derived as much enjoyment in other's finds/stories/jokes as I did my own. By the time I logged off, I felt as if I had completed another hunt and was happy.
Fast forward the last couple years and I got busy. Work, social life, graduate school, moving, family health, finances...you know...those daily activities I mentioned above. They all came in a rush and I unknowingly abandoned the activity that made me happy. I know you might thing, well your family, your money, your life outside of detecting is so much more important, this is just a hobby (well, ok, a religious devotion for some), something we do with our time, right? True, this activity can be described as all of those things and yet I still return to the fact that this activity is one of the few that makes me truly happy. I did not realize how much I had missed metal detecting until after receiving word that I was accepted to Harvard Law School, Class of 2013, graduated with my master's at Georgetown last weekend and a slack work schedule for the first time in forever that I hoped on Treasure Net and got caught up on everyone's progress.
I spent hours reading posts, viewing finds, and by the end of the evening or rather the wee hours of the next day, I was right back where I began...truly happy with the activity I had chosen.
While this post does not contain a bar copper, half disme, 1916-D merc, a massive cache, or that St. Gaudens double eagle....I did "find" something. I rediscovered an activity that while others may dismiss as quirky, weird, you know the list...I say is the best activity around. I plan on getting out there soon as getting dirty. (take that however you like, hopefully it involves digging in the dirt)
Here's to metal detecting and the reinvigorating spirit it has put me in!
Best regards,
-Hunter
All too often the things that make us truly happy end up taking a back seat to the rest of our daily activities. It's as if we are trying to get the other things done in order to get those last few moments of the day to just...enjoy. Many times, we never finish those other things and...well...we end up not happy.
I know, we have to do those other things in order to understand what really makes us happy, however, for this metal detectorist, life went and got itself in a big damn hurry and for the best, yet I really miss one of the few things that really made me happy: metal detecting.
Previously, I hit the fields, the parks, the barns, anywhere that I felt I might find something. The experience of finding a good spot, researching at the library to find other suitable areas, the thrill of the hunt, the agony of "heart stoppers", the rich history that many finds had and the connection to yesteryear that my finds put me in touch with, all of that meant a great deal to me. I could come home with a bag of trash for the day's take, be wet and dirty but have a smile a mile long because I was truly happy with this activity. I would come home, get a shower, dust of my finds, recycle trash, and hop online to see what others had found or to post my finds. Similar to a kid in a candy store, I derived as much enjoyment in other's finds/stories/jokes as I did my own. By the time I logged off, I felt as if I had completed another hunt and was happy.
Fast forward the last couple years and I got busy. Work, social life, graduate school, moving, family health, finances...you know...those daily activities I mentioned above. They all came in a rush and I unknowingly abandoned the activity that made me happy. I know you might thing, well your family, your money, your life outside of detecting is so much more important, this is just a hobby (well, ok, a religious devotion for some), something we do with our time, right? True, this activity can be described as all of those things and yet I still return to the fact that this activity is one of the few that makes me truly happy. I did not realize how much I had missed metal detecting until after receiving word that I was accepted to Harvard Law School, Class of 2013, graduated with my master's at Georgetown last weekend and a slack work schedule for the first time in forever that I hoped on Treasure Net and got caught up on everyone's progress.
I spent hours reading posts, viewing finds, and by the end of the evening or rather the wee hours of the next day, I was right back where I began...truly happy with the activity I had chosen.
While this post does not contain a bar copper, half disme, 1916-D merc, a massive cache, or that St. Gaudens double eagle....I did "find" something. I rediscovered an activity that while others may dismiss as quirky, weird, you know the list...I say is the best activity around. I plan on getting out there soon as getting dirty. (take that however you like, hopefully it involves digging in the dirt)
Here's to metal detecting and the reinvigorating spirit it has put me in!
Best regards,
-Hunter
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RR
Good luck and good finds to come 
Dd60
