Miracle at Berry College

Okay, I'll go ahead and admit it. Why not? I'm not what you would call an avid deer hunter. Not even close, compared to my husband, who eats, breathes and lives it to the max. But I do enjoy sharing it with him sometimes. His enthusiasm just draws you in and makes it fun.

I had almost gotten to the point where I was ready to just give it up for good. I've only harvested a few animals in all the years that I've been going hunting with Charles. One prong horn in Wyoming and a couple of does, all of which were several years ago. I can't tell you how many times I've gone and sat there days on end without seeing anything. Charles calls it paying your dues. But I had gotten to the point where I was beginning to think there was something wrong with me and I would never get the chance to get a trophy buck. I would sit in the stand day in and day out and fantasize about it; what I would do, how I would do it, and best of all, Charles' reaction when I did. But the reality of it really seemed remote.

Well, God finally felt sorry for me, answered my prayers and intervened on my behalf this year. The heavens opened, the angels descended and everyone sang Hallelujah! Well, sort of. Here's the story:

This actually happened on Charles' birthday, which is rather ironic but that's okay. I know God has a real sense of humor. We were on a management hunt at Berry College WMA and we were on an evening hunt during the “buck only” days, which almost guarantees I won't see anything. I see a lot of does on “Buck only” days usually. There were a lot of hunters in the woods and a couple of them were hunting pretty close to us so every once in awhile we would hear shooting and we weren't sure if it was one of us or not. So When he left me in my stand to go to his the last thing he said to me was “If I hear a shot I won't come to you unless you send me a text”. He left and later I tried to send him a text and he didn't answer and I hoped he had his phone.

Anyway, I'm sitting there thinking that I'm getting cold, it's almost too dark to shoot. Suddenly I see a deer, it's moving pretty fast. I'm waiting for it to get closer to see if it's a buck or a doe and soon it becomes very clear that this is a buck. A nice one! Thank you, Jesus! My heart starts pounding and I pick up my gun and try to get him in my scope but I can't! It's too dark! Oh, no! Please, Lord! Help me! Finally about 60 yards away he's silhouetted between two trees but he's still not stopping. I knew if I didn't shoot him I wouldn't get another chance so I put the scope on him and pulled the trigger. Boom! Down he went. Then he jumped up, ran a little ways and went down again. I was shaking so bad. I just couldn't believe it! So I send Charles a text, saying- I got him- and I wait. And wait. Nothing.

Well, I figured he doesn't have his phone so I decide I better get down and go check to make sure he's dead. I don't want him to suffer. It took me about 2 years to get down that tree, I was shaking so bad I couldn't get the stand to work right. I finally got down and went over to where I saw him drop. It's totally dark. And I see him! He's beautiful! And he's dead so I was grateful that I didn't have to shoot him again.

It was so dark and I knew we had to drag him out of there so I decided to go find Charles. I have a hard time finding my way in the woods, especially in the dark but I knew the general direction that he had gone so I headed that way, calling his name. Finally, after an eternity, I saw his light and heard him say, “What?” I told him that I got a buck. He said, “You did?” I said yes. He asked me where he was and I told him if he'd help me get back to my stand I would show him.

You won't believe the pride and joy that I felt when he went over there and shone his light on him and said, “Oh, my God, you got a nice one!”

I now know why this experience is so addictive. I have always had help any other time that I shot an animal but I did this all by myself. Except for God, of course. But this will be right up there as one of the most incredible moments in my life. When I pulled that trigger and knew that I had him, I can't even explain the feeling. But if you've done it there's no need to explain, you know what I mean.

I hate to give it away, but I'm a 57 year old woman. It's never too late. Age is just a number. I don't want to quit. I have the fever -big time-but if I never get a chance to go again, I will cherish the memory of that moment the rest of my life. That's why I wanted to write this story. As time goes on and my mind starts to go, I want to always have this to go back to, to relive that feeling. I wish I had thought to do that during other important times in my life but the older I get the more I appreciate those experiences. Thank you, God, for letting me feel like a winner for once. And Thank you to my husband, Charles, for allowing me to share his passion with him. I love you both!