As some of you know, I lost my mother to a long hard fought battle with cancer (24 years) exactly two weeks ago tonight. In short my mother was an amazing woman that raised my bro and I single handedly after my father died in a logging accident when I was 17 and my bro was 14. My mother modeled love, faith, toughness, grace and kindness like no other person I know till the day she died. These past two months, while she lived with us...I was able to spend quality time with her even in her failing condition and so did my wife and boys. She fought till the end and died with a smile on her face, in peace. My mother showed me how to pass with grace and dignity. She told me to live the "good life." I put everything in my life to the side the past few months, but now, feel the urge/need to get back into the mountains, where I feel the most alive and closest to God. So with this being said, at daylight in the morning. I am going to officially begin my summer scouting and prepwork for the upcoming whitetail, elk, bear and turkey seasons. I am gonna take my mother's lessons and her fearless will with me. Whitetails being my focus. I am going to dedicate this upcoming season to my mother, any animal God blesses me with this season will be in honor and memory of Donna Lee...she loved to hear our whitetail storys and was always so exicted when I would call her and say, mom you gotta see the buck Rob shot or I shot. She would keep tabs on me year around, my scouting, trail cams all of it..She would let me know anytime a big buck showed up near her house. She loved it all and would drive out to my house right away if I killed a buck...she was a big part of my brother's and my hunting and she always will be.
You mom sounded like a great person. Really regret not making it out to your place to get a chance to meet her. I bet she had a lot of good stories about your and your brother and your hunting/fishing excursions. Tim
Troy It's all in God's will that your loving mother has left and gone to the good side. Troy I know how much she meant to you and my prayers go out to you and Dee & The boy's and your bro Rob. I must say it was an honour to have met Donna on a hunt that was a tie between you & I that made a friendship that will last a lifetime. She'll be in my Prayers as will you and your family, Brother. God Bless Your Friend In Christ Rocky
Good for you Troy. There is nothing better than to be completely alone on an endeavor, in the wilderness, trying to complete a goal and to reflect on the full relationship(s) of loved ones that have passed. The clarity you get under those circumstances are unsurpassed. I have complete faith that you will realize your goal whether you harvest an animal or not. Good times. Greg
Troy Your mother sounded like a wonderful lady. I'm sure you'll still talk to her while you're in those mountains chasing that elusive whitetail. She'll be waiting to hear your next story.
Troy, I know exactly where you are with this. Almost a year ago, June 15th to be exact, I lost my mother as well to cancer. A day doesn't go by without a thought of her lessons enters my mind. Like you, my mother was a great inspiration and was the one who helped introduce me to the outdoors. Like your mother, my mother's journey taught me some valuable lessons, of which I will not take for granted. . Those memories and life lessons can never be replaced. I can already tell you that this season will be a special one for you.
Amen Troy, Amen!! Sure wish I could've made that trip this Spring bear hunting with you. Would've been awesome to share this goal with you. Go get em my friend!!
Troy, I wish you the best. Here is my vision on the season for you.....One of those giant mountain ghost bucks is going to materialize out of the timber and you are going to put him down.
Shed your mom sounds alot like mine. We live a thousand miles apart but she is the first person who gets the call anytime I or one of my boys shoots, or catches anything. I hope the lord bless' you this year like no other my friend. Our moms are the biggest influance in our lives, and we dont even know it until we are men.
Shed- I wish you the best of luck this year in everything you do.... I hope you feel her presence on every hunt and every outting. I think alot of us share the same heartfelt issues that you do weither it be our mom, dad, or someone very close to us that influenced us in the outdoors. I hope you have the season of your dreams and feel like you accomplished everything you wanted with this request! Good luck!
Thanks Friends, she was with me today as I got back in the mountains, checking scrapes, overmarking a couple and building a couple new ones. Hung 3 cameras today too, all I can say is I go into this hunting season with a new sense of just how precious this very SHORT time we get on earth. I have never felt so strongly about making sure I put my best effort forward in all things including my love for whitetail hunting.. My wife, kids and I had a great day today as well. Moms life really showed us how fortunate we are and how important it is to make the most of every single second of the days we are here. Thanks for sharing all of you, I will be thinking of you all that have been through this as well. Gregh, I thought of you a lot through this cause I know you had recently lost your dad. Elkhuntinut, thanks man, my thoughts are with you and thanks for sharing that with me, means a lot. Upbowhunter, your exactly right, I honestly always looked to my father as my hero, and do, but after seeing what my mother showed me in the past few months.. Words cant explain what I think of my mother. She will never be forgotten this is just one way I can honor her, she knew how much I loved to deer hunt.
Wishing you and your family the best for 2011 Troy. I really believe your Mom will be with you every step on your adventures out there.
Cancer is such a bad thing! Sorry for your lose and I am sure she will be pushing the deer in front of you this season. As they say Mothers know best! I wish you and your family the best. I know what cancer does to a person due to losing a girlfriend to cancer and she was only 33 years old. Now my buddy who lives right next door is in Chicago isolated in a room for his last chance effort to beat Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. I sure hope he pulls this out. He is in great spirits and is in a great mood.
Sounds great, Troy. Your mother had a wonderful influence on you, and it appears she did a great job as a mother. Good luck this season, and no matter what, your mother will be with you every step of the way.
Truer words have never been spoken. Your mom clearly taught her boys the true meaning of good friendships, a strong family, devoted spirituality and the value of an honest day's work. I'm glad that you got to enjoy some time with her before her passing. That will serve you and your family well, going forward, both in terms of appreciating what you have, and appreciating the value of being a good parent. Cheers, buddy. You're a good egg, and it sure sounds like the apple didn't fall far from the tree. It never does.
Best of luck to you Troy on the upcoming season! I know you will have a great season ahead. I can't wait for us to go on a hunt in the future, it will be fun to just hang out with you and share stories...God bless brother!
