The hunt

December 9, 2018

It must be broken. That’s the only explanation I can find for missing that deer this afternoon. It couldn’t have been the shooter. A little backstory is in order. 

Years ago, I deer hunted regularly, not particularly successfully, but regularly nonetheless. I quit after a couple unsuccessful years when I’d be out in the woods where it was supposed to be peaceful as I communed with God. Problem was, I’d be thinking of all the things I needed to get done as the fall programming was kicking into high gear, with reports and Christmas planning to be done. I’d sit there for an hour getting more agitated by the minute till I said, “Nuts! I’ve got stuff to do!” I’d trudge through the snow back to my truck, and that would be the end of my hunting for that year. Turns out, for years to come.

Until last Christmas. Son Matt had bought a .38/.357 lever action carbine earlier in the year and let me shoot it one afternoon. “This is really neat!” I told him. It was a fun shooter, and like the old timers out West, it was designed to take pistol calibre ammunition. Traditionally, it would have been .44 or .45, but that’s pretty expensive stuff to shoot. .38 is relatively cheap, and since I already have a .38 S&W snub, this carbine really caught my attention. So that is what I unwrapped last Christmas Eve when the kids give us their gifts. 

Today is the last day of regular deer season. The bathroom remodel which is finally done has prevented me from getting out earlier as I had hoped, but tomorrow muzzleloader season starts, so I have another week or so to try to bring home some venison. But today, I spooked two and actually got off a couple shots. I missed, of course, but I did get to shoot. If you aren’t into this sort of stuff, this won’t make any sense to you, but I want to say, that carbine is sweet! And the fact that I actually got to shoot, let alone see a couple deer, makes it a successful hunt for me. With no reports hanging over my head, I enjoyed the afternoon, the peace and quiet in the woods, where the only sounds I could hear were the singing brook in the gully below me, and the ringing in my ears.

I am thankful tonight to live where though quite restricted, the right to bear arms still exists, and where all around me are places where I can hike and hunt, whether or not I bring anything home. Sometimes it’s actually nicer the way today worked out. I’ve often said that hunting is no fun when you don’t get anything, and too much work when you do. I didn’t get anything other than an enjoyable afternoon capped off with edifying conversation with my sister and brother in law at the conclusion of the hunt. It’s been a good day, and no, it’s not broken. It shoots better than I do.