Page 6 - 2018 MAY/JUNE Outdoor Oklahoma

2017 CREATIVE WRITING COMPETITION

“WE WAITED AND WAITED, BUT WE

STILL DID NOT SEE ANYTHING.”

EDITOR’S NOTE: Each year, the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife
Conservation and Oklahoma Station Chapter Safari Club International
join to sponsor a creative writing competition for Oklahoma middle and high
school students. A boy and a girl from two age divisions are selected winners.
Students were required to write essays using the theme “Hunting: Sharing
the Heritage” or “Archery: What I Like About Archery in the Schools and
Bowhunting.” Winners in the age 15-17 category receive a guided antelope
hunt in the Texas Panhandle, and winners in the 11-14 age category receive
a hunting trip at the Chain Ranch and a scholarship to the Outdoor Texas
Camp. In this issue, Outdoor Oklahoma honors senior category female win-
ner Abbigaile Cherry, 15, from Chandler High School.

HUNTING: deer. That afternoon, he went out to one of his leases and put
out corn. He also made me a stand for my gun, so it would be
SHARING easier for me to aim at the deer. Saturday evening, we went to
the land we bought to build our house on, and got situated
THE for the deer to come our way. We waited till dark then headed
back home after seeing no deer at all. That night, I tossed and
HERITAGE turned all night, thinking about our weekend and hoping I
would see something the final day of youth season.
It was eight thirty-five when I woke up, and I became panicked
By Abbigaile Cherry that I had slept through my alarm. I raced out of bed into the living
It’s five o’clock in the room to see my family watching television. It turns out it was so
morning on Friday, and I windy that we could not go that morning. I now thought that there
heard the blaring alarm go was no way that I was going to shoot a deer.
off. I immediately went to hit snooze, but then I remembered Sunday evening, we head out to the lease that we had not
it was the first day of youth season, and I jumped out of bed. been to yet. We walked over the open field to the blind he had
I put on my camo and orange, poured a cup of coffee, and my set up right in front of the deer feeder. We get all set up in
dad and I were out the door. In our old red truck, my dad and our blind, and it wasn’t but five minutes later that three does
I were excitedly talking about our weekend to come. Once we walked out about 100 feet in front of us. The deer stayed there
got to the lease, we quietly climbed out of the truck, grabbed for about an hour. Then, right before it was too dark to see, my
our folding chairs, and started walking into the dark woods. dad tapped me on the shoulder to look up. I slowly lifted my
We got all situated with our chairs hidden behind a tree and head up and saw a small buck standing there. My heart started
my gun resting on my lap. Then we just waited patiently for beating so hard I thought it was going to come out of my chest.
the deer to walk our way. I slowly pulled up my gun and put it firmly against my
It is now nine o’clock, and we had not seen a single thing. shoulder. I found the deer in the scope, and I put the crosshairs
So we checked our deer camera then headed back out of in the middle of the deer, and pulled the trigger. My heart was
the woods. It was disappointing, but there was still a whole beating so fast. I looked over at my dad and asked if I shot him,
weekend ahead of us. We got home and my mom had made a my dad broke out into a big smile and said yes. After a while,
big breakfast for us. We ate and were eagerly waiting for the we went to look for it. My dad told me to go sit in the truck
evening to come so we could get back into the woods. Friday since it was dark. He looked for about an hour then came back
evening, we moved to a new spot, hoping we would see some- to the truck empty-handed. I was so disappointed.
thing there. We waited and waited, but we still did not see Even though I did not come home with anything that
anything. My dad and I went home, ate dinner and got to bed weekend, I gained an experience with my dad that I will never
early so we would not be tired in our adventures the next day. forget. Spending that quality time with him was far more
Saturday morning, we returned to the lease we were at the valuable to me than bringing home a deer. I will never forget
previous morning, and we still did not see anything. I was the times that my dad and I spend in the woods together.
becoming a little disappointed, but my dad reassured me that Hunting with my dad has been some of the best experiences
we had three hunts left and he would do his best to get me a of my life.

4 Off the Beaten Path