Bow Drill Fires and How They Relate to Life!

What is a bow drill fire? Most people don't really know so I'll give a quick into to them. For a bow drill fire you need 5 things
1. a bow( it kinda looks like one you would shoot with, but more sturdy and a lot shorter)
2. the spindle and bottom board.( these are the two sticks that rub together to make a fire.)
3. A good stone with a crevice in it for the spindle to rotate in.
4. something to catch the black powder( cardboard, bark, thick piece of paper, really anything that's handy)
5. for the final step you need a nest of soft easy burning stuff.
To make the fire you have to ... on second thought, here is a video explaining it.

 So now that you know how its made, what I'm about to talk about will make so much more sense. Guy #1 (remember him) lets call him Charlie! I feel like with Charlie, I'm trying to start a bow drill fire. You have to start slower, to get it started. But if you keep going and speed things up little by little, you will eventually get smoke and then an ember(coal).With 'Charlie' right now I am starting to speed things up little by little and just starting to see the little wisps of smoke! It's not much, but for me (a beginner at life's bow drill fires) it is that incentive to keep going and look for more smoke, an ember, and eventually fire. With Bow Drill Fires (the fire kind) one of the biggest problems beginners have is giving up to early. They start seeing a bunch of smoke and think that they are good. Nope. Sorry you have to keep going and going. It takes longer than you think it will. This explains exactly how I feel about Charlie. Everyone keeps telling me to, give up, don't wait around for him, and things like that. But I'm just starting to see smoke!! And smoke( in life) is a wonderful feeling especially for someone who has never experienced it before. Even the little bits.

So for now, 'Charlie' is here to stay! As long as I keep getting smoke, I'll keep pushing and pulling that bow drill until it either pops out of place(which is another thing that happens to beginners) or I get more smoke and and ember that will turn into a fire!! :)

P.S. I'm loving life right now!!


~ Accommodating Artist