It was the eve of Deer Hunting season, November 5th, 2010.  Just like every other year my Dad, Brother, and I spent it cleaning our guns as we debated our strategy on who was going to hunt where, and which deer to shoot if given the chance. It was my first year hunting on my own.  I have yet to shoot my first deer.   I argued and begged until I got to use the “lucky” stand where most of the deer appear. “Okay Charlie, are you sure you have everything ready?”, my Dad asked.  As I examined my checklist for the very last time I replied,“Of course I do. I’m always ready.” With a smirk on his face and a very faint chuckle he turns, walks upstairs and yells down, “Make sure to set your alarm clock!” Then heads to bed. Eagerly, I set my alarm clock for 4:30 a.m.. I knew that I had to fall fast asleep for a long day of hunting was ahead of me.  While I lay awake I ran through my list of gear over in my head.  Instead of counting sheep I was counting deer, while making sure I had all the necessary equipment as I doze off into a deep slumber.

The boisterous ringing of my alarm clock hit me like an NFL Linebacker. Within the blink of an eye I was up and anxiously preparing for the hunt. After I got bundled up to take on the frigid weather I walked upstairs to the kitchen to make a thermos full of hot chocolate to help fight off bone chilling temps that I was about to face. As I was eating breakfast my older brother, Jake accompanies me at the table and pours himself a bowl of cereal. Just as we both finished our meals my Dad steps in from the garage and says “Alright, we’re all packed. It’s time to hit the road.” Jake and I both raced through the door and into the garage to see who would get to ride shotgun. Usually I am no match for him, but today I was triumphant and beat him there. Once I was in position I quickly sprang up into the seat, locked the door, and put my seatbelt on so Jake wouldn’t be able to pry me from the front passenger seat of the truck.

As I got in the truck I tuned the radio to the oldies channel and Simple Man by Lynyrd Skynyrd was playing as we headed out traveling down the road. Growing up everything was a competition between me and Jake, and while we were on our way to the woods Jake says, “I’ll bet you $5 I shoot a bigger deer than you today.” I replied jokingly, “Alright, are you sure you want me to take your money though?” Jake chose to just ignore me because he couldn’t come up with a comeback to top that. As we bickered back and forth for a couple minutes my Dad found the conversation very comical as he just chuckled and continued driving. All of a sudden our argument ceased as we turned onto County Road 2 when Dad pointed out the 8 point buck that had just crossed the road ahead of us. Jake and I stared in amazement as the magnificent creature strutted across the two lane road. Not long after that we arrive at our hunting grounds, and stepped out of the truck.

I felt the delicate crunch of the frosted grass below my feet. The air was cold and frigid that morning. Every exhale of breathe was followed by a thick cloud of steam. Very fragile snowflakes fell from the sky, glistening through the moonlight. I grabbed my equipment, my thermos full of hot chocolate, and discretely headed to the deer stand. Although the walk only took 10 minutes I felt like I was walking for eternity. Once I arrived at the stand I gently crawled up and got comfortable. A couple minutes of shivering past and I remembered I had brought the hot chocolate along. I took a generously large first sip which in turn burnt my tongue on the blistering hot chocolate. So, I left the lid open to cool down a little bit. As I sat in silence Simple Man by Lynyrd Skynyrd was ringing in my ear over and over again like a broken record.

As I gazed into the distance awaiting to get a shot off at a deer everything I saw began to resemble the silhouette of a deer. I listened closely, and could hear the rustling of leaves and snapping of sticks. The noise got progressively closer I became more and more anxious. Later to realize two grey squirrels rambunctiously playing on the ground below.  Just as the sun began to rise gunshots could be heard all around. I grew impatient as I sat and waited for a deer to walk into my sight. Abruptly a nearby shot shattered the silence followed by a victorious screech from Jake. 30 minutes elapsed and I crawled down from my stand to go examine the deer. Through the bushes I saw a nice sized doe lying on the ground. He told me and dad the deer came in from the left and he shot it about 40 yards away and dropped it in its tracks. Dad took out his knife and started carefully gutting the deer while explaining to us what the proper techniques to use. The smell was horrific, and I was fascinated by the precision each slice of the razor sharp knife cut. Once Dad finished field dressing the deer I headed back to my sturdy stand, and got resituated.

Jake and Dad were packing up to go register the deer, but I was content on staying to continue the hunt by myself.  I sat on the hard cold  seat of the stand, and watched a pair squirrels running about, playfully chasing one another for hours. I began to lose my focus and started to doze off due to the lack of sleep from the night before. The relaxing song from birds chirping acted as a lullaby, gently putting me to sleep. Around three o’clock I got startled by the loud snap of a branch from behind me. I slowly turned my head to see my Dad standing there just letting me know that he was back.

As the sun began to set the wind picked up. It was 5:52 p.m., which meant there was only 30 minutes of hunting left for the day, I began to give up hope. Suddenly I heard a gunshot echo in the vicinity near me.  About 10 minutes later the neighbor’s dogs started barking. Then I saw something move in the distance, but I couldn’t quite make out the figure. I started hearing twigs snap and leaves rustle as the brown blur moved closer and closer. After it emerged from the thicket 100 yards out from me, I could clearly see a doe walking straight towards me. My heart began to race as the petite doe was now in shooting range. I raised my gun and turned the safety off. Moments before I was going to pull the trigger, I heard a loud distinct grunt coming from the other way. When I peeked around the backside of the tree an eight point buck was staring directly into my eyes. I didn’t move a muscle, or even blink an eye. The buck put his head down and strutted mightily towards the doe. Slowly I pulled the gun into a shooting position and looked down the scope. With a deep inhale and a fatal pull of the trigger my hunt was over.