Hunter-gatherer: Food and Limited Personal Possessions Essay

My people are what you call Hunter-Gatherers. We survive by hunting and gathering our food. We live in what are called â€Å"Bands.† These usually consist of 15-20 people, all of which are usually related either by blood or marriage. We don’t have any type of government or hierarchy like other civilizations. Instead we believe we are all created equal, and we treat each other in that manner. We are nomadic, which means that we do not stay in the same place year around. We move in order to take advantage of the abundance of different foods in different areas. I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me take you through a day in my life. Our breakfast is pretty simple. The outcome of the hunting and gathering of yesterday decides what food we will eat for breakfast today. On a good day we will eat grapefruit, or a mixture of fruits and nuts along with some elk jerky, and of course accompanied by spring water. After breakfast the men will leave for their daily hunt.There is a great skill to their hunting, for they must know where and when to look for the foods. The men use various tools in hunting for animals. The most common of these tools is the bow. This is the most powerful weapon available. Arrows made of wood with flint blades set in their ends are also used for hunting. Our men hunt for game such as deer, elk, bear, birds, etc. They also fish. The results of the hunt are very important, mostly because we must eat, but also because we need to utilize every part of the animal in order to survive. We have various uses for the animal after it has been killed. First and foremost it is our source for food. It also provides us with the shelter and the clothing we need.I guess now would be a good time to tell you about the types of homes we live in. We cannot build permanent homes because we move around. Our houses are temporary, and because we move around we have limited personal possessions. Our shelters are lightweight huts and wind-breaks that are built out of branches. We also use the skins of animals to create tents.Our clothing is also made of animal skins. We make our clothes by stitching together hides using bone needles and animal sinew. The teeth of the animal are often used to create necklaces or pendants.After the men arrive home from their hunt, the women work together to process the food that was collected that day. The nuts and shellfish need to be removed from their shells, and the birds that were killed need to be plucked of their feathers. We also need to skin the animals and prepare the meat for cooking. For dinner we will have duck, served with nuts and fruit. If anyone is still hungry afterward they can eat jerky or grapefruit. The meat will be cooked over a simple fire, roasted on a spit. Dinner will be delicious tonight, and a great reward for a successful day’s hunt.After dinner we sometimes gather around the fire and tell stories, or dance in celebration of the hunt. We must not take life for granted, for our lives are filled with hard work and the struggle to survive.Hope you enjoyed accompanying me in the journey through my day to day life!