Gram

October 23 started out as one of those hunts that wasn’t going exactly the way I had hoped.

A friend of mine had invited me to Eastern Kentucky for an early-season muzzleloader hunt. It was a two-day hunt, and although I hunted hard, the old smoke pole never got a chance to do its thing.

At the end of those two days, I had a choice to make. I could pack up and head home, or I could stay one more day and give it another shot.

I decided to stay.

This time, I put the muzzleloader away and broke out my Mathews Triax for one last evening in the woods.

It was getting late when a buck finally stepped into the food plot. He eased out and started feeding on the fall greenery in the plot. I knew there were several more deer behind him, and part of me wanted to wait and see what else might step out.

But daylight was fading fast.

This was my last evening.

And sometimes, you just know.

I decided this was the deer I wanted to harvest.

I settled in, drew the old Mathews back, and let it do what it does.

The shot was good. The Iron Will broadhead did its job, and the buck didn’t make it 30 yards into the thicket.

Normally, that would be the part of the story where I talk about the excitement of finally putting everything together after a couple of unsuccessful days.

But this hunt meant more than that.

This was the first deer I harvested after my grandmother passed away.

My grandmother was one of the first people who encouraged me to follow my dreams. She believed in me, supported me, and was one of those people who helped shape the man I became.

Losing her was hard. It still is.

So when I walked up on that deer in Eastern Kentucky, I knew he was going to mean more to me than just another buck on the wall.

I named him Gram in her honor.

Every time I look at him, I think about her.

I think about the people God places in our lives who encourage us, challenge us, stand beside us, and help us become better than we would have been on our own.

And honestly, that is a big part of what Eastern Outdoor Brotherhood is about.

EOB may be built around hunting, fishing, camping, and the outdoors, but the outdoors are really just the setting.

The real mission is brotherhood.

It is about recognizing that no man should have to walk through life alone.

There are seasons when everything is going right, and there are seasons when life hits hard. There are times when we are strong enough to encourage someone else, and there are times when we need someone beside us.

That is where Proverbs 27:17 comes in:

“Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.”

Brotherhood is more than having someone to hunt with.

It is having men in your life who push you to be better husbands, fathers, friends, Christians, and men. It is being willing to show up when someone is struggling. It is celebrating their victories and standing beside them through their losses.

My grandmother was one of the people who sharpened me.

Gram is a reminder of her, but he is also a reminder of why this brotherhood matters.

The trophies eventually collect dust. The hunts become stories. The pictures get older.

But the people who walked beside us, and the impact they had on our lives, stay with us.

That is what this deer represents to me.

That is Gram.

And that is why we believe no man should walk alone.

— Eric Langhans

Eastern Outdoor Brotherhood