Fall 2023

First Deer!

As the saying goes, "You only get one first!"  Gibsen patiently waited all fall until it was time for his turn in the deer woods.  He would be gun hunting and a busy September would cause youth season to come and go. Gibsen watched his brothers and me fill our tags and start the season off strong.  While he was patient, he was also ready.  2nd shotgun season arrived and it was finally his turn.  For some reason, Gibsen has been fortunate to be given the gift of quick and successful hunts.  He shot his first turkey on the first hunt and his first deer was going to be a similar situation.  We hunted the morning with little show for our efforts other than getting to spend some amazing quality time together in the blind. The morning was filled with hilarious commentary and some musing games of 20 questions.  I can honestly say, that the questions that came out of this kid's mouth were straight-up comical.  No, Gibsen, deer don't typically have rabies. If a deer was up in the tree and it was the right deer, would you let me shoot it?  Of course, I would.  And one of the best, yes, I do think deer would drink beer if someone gave them some. What a goof!

The afternoon we switched to a different spot and enjoyed the snow falling and some more quality time together. As the magic hour approached we spotted a couple of deer coming down the hillside and things got serious pretty quickly. We watched through the binoculars and could tell that one of the two was bigger and decided we would see if they would come within range.  It wasn't long and the smaller deer popped its head over the hill and came in to eat some turnips.  The bigger deer was close behind and showed up following the same path.  We were able to get the rifle up and into position and Gibsen found the bigger deer in the scope.  I could hear his breathing increasing and almost feel his heart pounding.  I asked several times if he wanted to shoot and he finally said "It's a perfect shot dad!".  As I waited for a decision to be made, I suddenly heard his breathing slow down to a crawl and I knew he had made up his mind.   A well-placed 60-yard shot dropped his first deer in her tracks.  The tears and cheers started, Gibsen had killed his first deer, what a year!   

What a year indeed!  Everyone was blessed to harvest a deer and put some meat in the freezer. More importantly, we all got to spend some much-needed time together in the woods.

Take care and Be Well!