Disclaimer: The book, The Hobbit, belongs to J.R.R. Tolkien, and by no means do I own the movie. I do not own these characters and I am not making a profit from this story. I am just taking these characters out for a walk in the park and I promise to return them in one piece.
Some people get a thrill out of the physical exercise. Others, hacking or beating a training dummy to death. Still others enjoy the lectures and lessons before a new technique is taught (that I really cannot understand). But me? I enjoy the precision aspect—the bow to be exact.
It takes a special person, or so I am told, to master the bow and arrow. A sharp eye, steady hand, and the coordination between the two, along with spot-on reflexes, needs to be inborn in a person if they want to succeed with that sort of weapon.
Lucky for me I have those qualities.
Although I am advanced with the bow that is not the reason I like it. Now do not get me wrong, it helps that I am half decent at the sport, but it is the precision, the internal calmness, needed to hit a target that thrills me.
I know, I know, you are thinking 'how can such a boisterous, fun-loving, and adventurous Dwarf enjoy such a serene instrument over the lively dance of the sword?'
The answer is simple.
Everyone needs a quiet moment—a moment to take a step back from the stress and responsibilities of the busy world, and just breathe and forget. For most Dwarves my age, that moment comes through the "creative" trainings of writing, drawing, or music making, or through the physical exertion of the battle training sessions, where one's mind is distracted by pain.
For me? The constant activity of my brain, the need to fidget and move around, the worry over my widowed mother, keeping an eye on my older brother, the concern for my restless uncle—a king without a kingdom who lost virtually everything, wondering if I will trap enough animals to sell at the market of Men let alone set our own table… it all disappears, if only for a little while, as I listen to my body move in perfect harmony to imbed an arrow dead center 50 meters away.
That, for me, is all the thrill I need to be at peace with myself and the hectic world.
Now I am beginning to sound philosophical.
If you will excuse me, I will be out at the training grounds with my bow.
Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed this vignette! I do not usually write in 1st person so I thought I'd do something different for a change. Please, do leave a review and let me know what you think :)