Forward- I started to send this via PM, but I thought some of you may enjoy reading this as much I've enjoyed looking back on some things. Scott and I go back aways . Almost 30 years to be exact . Scott and his Dad ,Larry, were major influences of mine as I developed into a bowhunter . Larry was the only guy I knew to have a P&Y animal to his credit , an antelope no less, and Scott had killed a bear !! Scott probably influenced me in other areas , much to my parent's dismay. But , ah, the memories . I'll always consider myself in their debt .
Dear Scott,
I hope all is well with you, Mindy , and the kids . I see you're still very busy with the wraps thing . Good . Everyone needs a hobby and if making stickers is yours, then good on ya.
And of course, I see you're still slaying critters .I'm pretty tickled you didn't revert back to the wheel bow as I had my doubts. It's funny, I can't look at a Widow bow without associating it with your Dad .
Actually , lot's of things I come across brings you guys to mind. I usually find myself getting a little homesick for the Ozarks in the fall and in the spring . Couldn't tell you when the last time was that I went sucker grabbin' . Come to think of it , I think you were there . That's a pretty good indicator .
This past fall , I had taken a young man out to one of my stands to let him sit for a spell . Pretty good area , lots of buck activity and lots of pigs . Figured he'd stick something , or at least get his adrenaline flowing some . I actually ended up taking a healthy three year old out of that same stand about a week later. Anyway, I told him to stay there until I came and got him. When I went to get him , I was able to sneak up to his tree without him seeing me, and then was able to climb about 3/4's of the way up the tree before I whispered ," Seeing anything ?". The exact same thing you did to me when we were hunting at your grandparents' place when you were home for the Holidays.
Life's been eventful out this way as life usually is . I don't know if you were aware , but I did a tour in Afghanistan from 2012-2013 . Might be surprised to know it's a beautiful place. And...I saw bears there . True story . They used to hit a dump outside JBad . I considered it my 'Farewell Tour' as I had planned to retire before getting hit for another.
My marriage didn't survive the last deployment . Not uncommon , really . I attended one briefing where they said 70% of us would be divorced with-in the first year of coming home. Worked out , though . A former Sailor of mine sent me a text about year after that simply said " Hey". We had our first anniversary April 29th of this year . Yes, Stephanie is a woman .
I retired from the Navy July of last year . I always said when I didn't find it fun anymore, it was time to go . I was attached to a Coastal Riverine Squadron in California so I was flying out there at least once, sometimes twice, a month to run ranges for them . 18-20 hours day , cold as you wouldn't believe at night. And was tired of being gone all the time. One day when packing up my gear to head out yet again, I just stopped and said," I'm done."
Stephanie had me move down to where she's from which I think you'd really like . We live outside of Elgin, Ok .. Our front porch faces west and offers a spectacular view of the Wichita Mountains. Really is beautiful. Rugged, but beautiful. I keep hoping to rub shoulders with a rancher whose land butts up against the Refuge , maybe catch an elk slipping . It's a pretty lengthy commute to work, but I've got my retirement papers in so that'll be a thing of the past once DC decides to move . No rush.
Man, the elk , Scott !! They're thick here !! And sadly , well protected . For the most part , anyway . The Refuge has some draw hunts but they're rifle only . Fort Sill has some bow opportunities , but very sought after and still a type of lottery system.
So get this, February 20th of this year was crazy with a capital 'C', my man.
http://www.kswo.com/story/37543732/crews-respond-to-fletcher-house-fireGot up that morning to make coffee around 4:00 AM and smelled something in the kitchen . Nothing alarming , like, maybe I had left the oven on or something . Checked it . Nothing . Almost dismissed it and went back to bed for a bit, but decided to peak in the garage . I was greeted to a ball of flames . Entire garage was engulfed. Got the kids and dogs out ( Stephanie was at work ) and drove them to a neighbors house in my truck that was , thankfully, parked out in the drive. Kid you not , in the few minutes it took for me to call 911 and drop them off , the roof had began collapsing . Attic fire . Started in the attic over my daughter's room . What I saw in the garage was flash down from the attic. And I guess often times when a fire in the garage shorts out the garage door, they open automatically. Ours did as I was evacuating our daughter , our son was already in the truck and saw it open. I was too focused on getting her pokey butt in the truck that I didn't even notice. They talk about hearing 'pops' in the news video . I didn't hear anything , but that was probably reloading stuff cooking off . My wife had gotten a news alert on her phone right after I called her. She said, " Honey , the news is saying it's contained ." The only thing contained about it was that it wasn't reaching other houses . I was watching the house collapse as we were talking.
But we all got out OK , not so much as a singed hair. House was a complete loss . But boiled down to just 'stuff'. And we purchased our home out in the country.
Obviously, all my bows and other gear was lost . That made me sick . Each bow that you carry during a season or build yourself, it has memories with it . I bought a Martin Hunter while I was stationed in South Dakota that I took two elk, an antelope, and maybe five or six mule deer with. And I remembered them every time I picked that bow up. A Saxon longbow that I took goose hunting a couple times, with some success I might add. A Bighorn Ramhunter that I took my buck with this past season . All those memories attached to them . Now they were indistinguishable as anything . Bows I had made , my arrows I had crafted. And that was heart wrenching.
I was discussing this with my Mom.
Do you recall , way back in the day , that compound I had in the summer when we fist met ? Believe that would've been in '89 before you left for Joplin for school. The Browning Bushmaster with the pretty laminated riser . You and I used to shoot for hours back behind your house . Me with that little Browning, you with your Golden Eagle. I forget what the target backstop was up against , but I do recall if you missed and hit whatever that was, your arrow was destroyed.I actually bought a second one the summer of '90 at that little bow shop we had in town. Think it was a trade in. Pretty sure I used my Town and Country Supermarket pay check to buy it. Anyway, it had a blonde laminated riser , whereas , the one I shot with you had a greenish laminated riser . I bought the second one to bowfish the river outside Hartville . Thing was loaded with carp and gar.
As I was mourning the loss of my gear , Mom says ," Aaron, I still have your bows." All this time , Mom had kept them cased in a spare bedroom .
Soon as I saw them , soon as my hand closed on that forest green wood ; I was taken to a whole 'nother time and place. I was back at your place , at the Barnett's , the Moody's , or at the Cox's . All the hours we all spent shooting together. Some of the happiest times of my life. I can't remember if it was you, James, or Matt that had to run me up to the little ER we had for a few stitches due to a broadhead mishap. I could see your little yellow pickup that we took places it was never meant to go. I was climbing a stand that Larry Anderson had put up .I later took my first little buck during a hunt before school out of one his stands at his Father-in-Law's place. Incidentally, I was battling a serious case of mono during that hunt. I was out of commission for months . I do recall you stopping by and commenting that it smelled of death in my room and offered to end my suffering.
I've got those bows, Scott. And both are now wearing 'curve limbs . But all the memories seem to be stored in the risers as I experience them as soon as I pick 'em up.
Warm regards , Scott, and give everyone my best.
Topic: Onestringer , aka Scott...let's take a walk, my friend (Read 2038 times)
