Good Luck Buck?

Well, you've heard the old saying, "sometimes it's better to be lucky than good". That pretty much could be the sub-title to this post. Here is the story...

Two mornings ago (Monday) I was in my stand near the river. It was a cold morning, perfect for hunting. The wind was out of the west and I was feeling good about the conditions. After about two hours on the stand I hear something from behind me (down wind), I look over and see this young buck heading straight toward me, nose to the ground. Within the next 10 seconds I had to stand up, get my bow, and get ready for a shot - he was coming that fast. Fortunately he slowed down by our drainage ditch and angled toward me for what looked like a perfect broadside shot at 20 yards. He paused at the base of the ditch behind some brush as I pulled back. I was waiting for him to take another step or two, and the next thing I know I squeezed off the shot. I'm really not sure what happened - I must have thought he was in position for a good shot and just took it instinctively. Well, my instincts proved to be suspect in this situation - I hit him way back, a gut shot. (I either pulled the shot left or he was still moving when I released, I'm not sure what happened...)

He wheels around and runs back the way he came. The arrow only penetrated about 10" (I thought it must have caught a rib). After about 100 yards he circles back to the west and then starts slowly walking off. My heart sank. I knew that I blew the shot. I was very frustrated with myself - disgusted would be a better word. I waited a few minutes and then checked for blood at the sight of the shot - nothing. I spent the next 90 minutes walking the first 150 yards of what should have been a blood trail, and never found a single drop of blood. Did I mention that my heart sank? Well, it was beyond that now, I was honestly ready to admit defeat and sell off the archery equipment and go back to playing golf, or something equally ridiculous.

And then I made what turned out to be a very good decision, I did not go after him. I came home and stewed for about 7 hours before resuming the pursuit. I had two friends join me, Jimmy and Dan. They are more experienced hunters and trackers than I am, and I was very grateful for their help. So, with two 8 year old boys and one dog in tow, we started looking for some blood. An hour later, more than 400 yards from the spot I hit this buck, Jimmy finds blood. Another 30 minutes and we are standing at the river bank looking at my buck floating amongst some dead fall - I was elated! I thought for sure I had screwed this whole thing up and lost this deer. I have never been more happy to wade into waist high, 40 degree water.

Another interesting thing happened while searching for this buck - I came across the remains of a different buck I had shot and lost last year (holding his skull in the picture). The kicker is that he died only 25 yards from my property, within 10 feet of the river. Jimmy and I had searched for that buck also, but I guess I gave up the search too quickly (a lesson I will never forget).

So, was finding this buck good luck? Some would say so, but I honestly believe God helped us. I prayed many times that day for God's grace in this situation. I knew I had messed up the shot, but I asked God to help in spite of my mistakes. And he did - and he does.