Originally Posted by Preacher Tony

Where to start .... my FIL and I shared the love of deer hunting and guns... whenever we would go down to their place, we would inevitably shoot his wide assortment of pistols and blow stuff up .

This year his cancer took a bad turn and he was never even healthy enough to have his family over this summer or even come over for dinner. Our visits were pretty much at the hospital.

Fast Forward to last Wednesday ..we were called in as FIL contracted Sepsis .... he was dying ...I watched him die ... due to somethings that I have left out .. it changed me and started my wife and I on a 6 day dawn till dusk "adventure" as he did not prepare and MIL had no clue what to do.

So between the meetings with the funeral director to finding a cemetery and meeting with them to finding a place for the luncheon yesterday all while trying to grieve ... it was difficult, but God is Faithful and gave us strength. Wake services all day Saturday ...phone call from their Pastor's wife that the pastor was rushed to the hospital with gall bladder issues and was very ill ... now I must tell you that they lived in the Boonies of South Western NY and our choices were limited. We can't find a pastor ... they ask me to do it ... I could not for reasons I can't say right now, but some of you know. The issue was not me, BTW. They get some traveling Methodist minister to do it, so we met with him between Sunday's wake services.

Yesterday was the funeral ...we buried her father ... Andrew and my daughter's husband were Pallbearers ... Andrew thinks of his Mom's funeral and breaks down sobbing in my arms at the cemetery. So sad....

So we are driving home from the luncheon and I called my boss and asked if I could take today off to decompress .. he immediately said no problem, so I am now looking forward to going and sitting in a tree today ... I never got to my tree....

The Deer Story

I woke up at 5:30 as sunrise is 7:30 ... I head out a little late at 6:10 for my 7 minute ride to these hunting grounds. I was determined to shoot a buck in honor of my FIL, and I told my wife that as I was heading out...

I park the car about 6:20 .. later than I wanted to be ... i get dressed, go to grab my jacket and cinch it to my back pack .... I left it at home I drive back home, now with bus traffic, grab my jacket, contemplated going behind the house but Jan said, just go where you are familiar and enjoy yourself ... so back into the car .. get to the grounds and start heading in for the supposed to be mile hike back to my creek stand across the street ....

Wind is blowing back and slightly to the right (West) .. perfect wind for going up the right side of the property. I walk past the scrub island and the first cornfield that runs North to South and hit the alfalfa field ... I hit the back cornfield which also runs North - South and it is getting pretty light now ... about 7:15 ....

I look up and 20 yards away is a monster of a doe standing broadside ...she was watching me come up, so she blew and bolted straight back ... 5 seconds later 2 deer come crashing thru the cornfield real close to me and they are running to the green field that separates the 2 cornfields ... I remember someone on BH.COM saying to blow back at the deer so I did and they stopped in the green field about 60 yards away .... looking, but they can't see me ....

I wait about 10 minutes as the wind is in my favor and I want that other big "doe" that came out with a little one .... they calm and start feeding ... I crawled to the edge of the cornfield on my knees and waited for them to feed again .... they did, I stood up ... now they are about 40 yards away and quartering away ... no way I am taking that shot ... my heart was coming thru my chest ... the "doe" finally looks at me and I can see antlers ... My FIL was the type to scoff at letting any deer go, so whenever I did, I never told him

So the buck see this handsome blob and starts to walk towards me .. there is no way I am taking a quartering too shot .. I wanted a broadside shot or nothing as I had nocked a Grim Reaper ...I stood still ... the buck fed ... looked at me again and walked towards me trying to figure me out... he feeds ... now he turns broadside and takes a step towards the wood line ... he feeds .. I draw....got the bow pulled back he looks at me ... I have to wait to get aligned ... he feeds ... I align ... I guess him at 30 yards ... I wait for him to not be looking at me .. he obliges ... I put the pin on the top of his heart in case he drops and release .....

He drops and turns to his right as I hear that beautiful "SMACK" sound and see with my arrow sticking out mid body right behind the shoulder ... he runs away from the woods with the other deer, straight down the greenfield .... I watch him, expecting him to fall at any second ... he is running great ... 100 yards .....200 yards .... 300 yards .... he gets to the graved road that leads to the Windmills ... the neighboring property is new winter wheat and hay field ...400 yards ... 500 yards ... the land slopes up so I can see this going on ....600 yards ... the little one jumps something and the buck jumped to .. but it looked different .. then I don't see them ...

I never seen a mortally hit deer run that far, so I was totally confused ... the arrow looked real good, tho it penetrated not even half way .. I figured it lodged in his off shoulder.... I check out the hit area ... no blood or hair to be found .... I look all around and nothing .... i walk arcs heading towards where I last saw them looking for blood ... nothing ... I get to the gravel road and notice some deer track that looked a little different ... no blood ... I keep walking on to the neighboring property (I have permission to look for hit animals from him) and just keep looking for blood or my arrow .... I am kind of losing hope .. If I wouldn't have seen my arrow sticking in him, I would really be bumming ... but I kept looking and praying....

My eyes come over this knoll and I see a dark spot with what looked like a flag sticking above it...



walking a little more and I know it is him ...






This buck ran at least 700 yards and it was double lunged .. it was high lung, but the lungs were hamburger ... that is such a sobering thought to me .... shot with a Grim Reaper .... it buried in the front shoulder .. had a hard time getting it out.

This is a very special hunt to me as I dedicate this deer to my Father-in-Law ... if he can see me, he is smiling

So this one is for you, Pops!