Hunting and the Military

Photo by israel palacio on Unsplash

While serving in the military you experience a lot of different things. The stress of everyday life with work and personal life is tough enough. Then, you add in the fact that you signed the contract giving yourself to defend this great country. All the 0430 mornings you get up to go run 4-6 miles and work out, the 10+ hour days while in garrison, the week-long fields where you work around the clock, the training missions before deployment where you are taken to another state for a month, then the deployment where your gone from 6-12 months. All this is taxing and hard to get away from. It is for me.

I am a soldier in the U.S. Army, and before this I was a sailor in the U.S. Navy. The lifestyle I chose to defend this country and people in it is not for the weak hearted. With this sort of lifestyle, you must find ways to relax and reset yourself. A lot of people turn to video games, drowning themselves in the bottle, or they pick up hobbies. A lot of men and women who can’t find a way to relax and reset turn down a dark, trouble-some path. For me, I turn to the outdoors and mostly hunting.

I can truly say, without a second of reserve, hunting has saved me. Being out in the woods, being one with nature, and being closer to the Creator is how I truly reset from the stresses of being a soldier. When I’m out there, I can just put my mind to rest. I am no longer thinking about “Did I push myself hard enough during PT? How am I going to get my troops prepared for the upcoming field, mission, or deployment? Is my family going to be alright when I am gone? Are the kids going to be alright with school, dance, sports?” At that point, I am just in the woods waiting on a deer, turkey, duck, dove, or whatever I am hunting that morning. It is my personal reset.

I tell my soldiers, whether you stay in or get out, you need to find this reset in your life, and what puts you at peace. For me, that is hunting.

-Daniel Wright, Fall Obsession Field Staff