Memorial Day, 2024
I went back and forth, between fighter pilot or soldier, when I was a little kid. Ultimately, I settled on soldier and I saw that dream to fruition; from combat medic to infantry officer over the course of ten years in uniform. What I didn’t realize at the time was how so many expectations of a solider apply, to a varying extent, to those of a skilled hunter. Under physical and mental stress: navigate with only map and compass in foreign areas regardless of weather conditions or time of day, employ a point-target weapon system at a specific target with a very small standard deviation, develop a task-specific logistical plan from tarmac to tarmac, be physically fit and mentally agile. It is because of these parallels that I found myself immediately feeling at home, feeling comfortable, when I started hunting. I knew that kind of life. And I loved it.
There’s an inverse relationship with my time in service and my time afield. I started hunting as an adult. I killed my first deer when I was 21. I loved it. I still love it. It’s where I’m… me. And that’s how I felt about being a soldier. For a long time, being a soldier was my identity. But as I closed the door on that chapter, and started the next one, I started something of a new identify. One where I felt just as at-home. Husband & Hunter.
There’s a few things that are hard for me. Emotionally. Most of those things are tied to my time in uniform. Tied to those I knew during that time. And the things I did, during that time, and also, the things I didn’t do. Right after I left the Army those hard things were at the forefront of my mind. Every day. But, as I began to hunt more, and experience what comes with that, the more I was able to manage those thoughts and feel comfortable again. Even when the weather down-right sucked or the odds of success were objectively more slim than a Jim. I just kept going to the place that helped me. I kept going hunting every chance I got.
I think I knew that, that going hunting was helping me cope with certain things, but it’s taken a few years, and a bird dog, for me to really process all of that. To give hunting the credit it’s due for how its made me feel as a veteran, as a husband, as a person. And now I know just how damn important and special it is to me. I love hunting - and I want you to, too. Because today I’m thinking about those service members that didn’t get to come back home and go hunting. How I wish they could have had the chance to fall in love with hunting, too.
