Why Hunt Talk is the BEST!

[MNHunter]

Thanks for your service and safe travels home!

 

[Elkchaser12]

Thank you for your service safe travels back home

 

[kansasdad]

When i saw the thread title, and saw the author, I thought the next word might be "BOMB" and not "BEST".........See what I did there??

Glad you have done your best at your duty, and excited for you and the family that you are on your way home. Thank you for your attention to duty.

 

[rmyoung1]

I know everyone else has said it a thousand times, but.... Thank you, Ray, for your service and dedication to our country. Obviously, words don't do our gratitude justice. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

 

[Zach]

Ray,

My family and I can not say thank you enough to not only yourself, your fellow warriors(past and present) but to your family that has sacrificed more than most of us will ever know.

It has been my honor to read your posts and share a little bit of your life.

I hope I am among the first HuntTalkers to get to meet you in person and say thank you properly.

Prayers for a continued safe trek home to be reunited with your family.

God Bless,

Zach

 

[putm2sleep]

Just plain old American badassery right there.

Thanks for all you do Ray. Thanks to all the guys and gals over there. Glad your headed home.

Yep - well said Ben!

 

[nidahunter]

Very glad you are on your way home. Here's to a safe trip and a happy homecoming with your family!

Hey Big Fin, try to put together a hunt with Ray, I'll bet it would be the most watched one ever,and if anyone deserves to go on a hunt with you it would be him. Would be a great episode!

 

[hunt1up]

Sincere thanks for your service!

 

[sluggo6850]

Thanks for your service Ray, and for giving us a glimpse of what all of our hero's are going thru overseas. Glad to hear you're about home. Good luck this hunting season!

 

[idnative1948]

Glad to hear that you are on your way, sir!
Surround yourself with your family and make sure you have a bud you can talk to who* understands*. I know this wasn't you first rodeo though.

 

[tarheel]

No sentiment or expression of gratitude could ever measure up to the sacrifice you and our other service members have made on behalf of those people and our love of liberty, but it's all we can do for the most part and I feel sure that what has been felt and expressed by the members of the forum and myself is as genuine and heartfelt as we are capable of. Welcome home.

 

[noharleyyet]

No sentiment or expression of gratitude could ever measure up to the sacrifice you and our other service members have made on behalf of those people and our love of liberty, but it's all we can do for the most part and I feel sure that what has been felt and expressed by the members of the forum and myself is as genuine and heartfelt as we are capable of. Welcome home.

...well said.

 

[L. I. Yankee]

We can never give you what you have given to us....thanks for your service and welcome home Ray.....

 

[EODRay]

You know I enter into this particular homecoming with fear and trepidation. There is a high likelihood that this will be my last deployment. With that in mind, I have many mixed emotions.

Before I joined the Army at the age of 27, I tried to get my thrill fix with things like bull riding, bungee jumping, cliff diving, climbing, repelling, etc. The first time I was in a fire fight in 2002, I was almost paralyzed with fear but the training kicked in and I did what I was trained to do. With time, it I became used to facing death and developed a desire for the rush of facing my fear and killing my enemy. I will never forget the first time I took a mans life. I was proud of it and told myself that what I was doing mattered. After all, I was a Soldier and that is what we did to secure the freedoms of our loved ones back home……….right?
As an EOD tech, we were not only called to disarm the IED's that were found on the battlefield (a life and death chess match against my enemy) but we were also called to the post blast situations where my brothers were brutally destroyed by an explosion. I would first have to clear the scene of any further hazards and then collect the evidence of what had happened and rebuild the situation for my report. These were the hardest things to do and instilled an intense hatred and desire to kill my enemy. The pictures, smells and details of these scenes will be with me for the rest of my life. These things had to go in a box in a corner to be dealt with at a later time………you cannot afford to deal with them at the time.

Becoming the beast, the killing machine, the Combat Soldier was a hard thing. I fear that becoming normal again will be harder still. You see, there is nothing in the civilian world that can compare to these things. How do you go home to a normal life with your family when you have experienced so many life altering things for so long? What do you do when the music stops? I think of John Cushman and all of my other brothers and sister in arms who have left the war but the war will never leave them.

Last deployment I wrote a poem about one particular event that happened. SGT Brown had ridden in our vehicle the prior day to show us where a particular IED was located. While driving to the scene, he showed us pictures of his twin girls that had just been born and expressed how excited he was to get home and get to know them. The very next day, we got another call for an IED in the same area. On the way to the scene, we heard a detonation. I have a feeling in my gut that this explosion was the IED that we were going out to.

When we arrived, SGT Brown, 6 Afghan National Army Soldiers and an interpreter had been blown away by an IED. I cleared the scene for secondary devices and then collected the evidence. When I got back to my FOB, I sat on my bed and cried and wrote this poem to help deal with the situation.

Today at the scene was a horror to see; there were brains in the dirt and a tong in the tree.
SGT Brown in a hole 50 feet away, I did not want to see this today.
The bomb so strong took away all his features; this horrible war took away his whole future.
A month ago he just had twins; his death will destroy his family and friends.
And this is just one of the 8 that died, in the dirt they lay there by his side.
The linguist we pulled from the canal; the smell of the dead, it truly is foul.
I sit in my tent and reflect on the day and ask myself, is there no other way?
Is the cost to great I make invocation; is there no other way to protect our great nation.
When I get home I’ll be mean to my wife, I’ll fight with her and the house will have strife.
I won’t mean to do it and she will abhor it; it’s hard to adjust and I’ll hate myself for it.
How do I know, because it’s happened before, you can’t leave behind the effects of the war.
The families they suffer, don’t you doubt it; most back home just don’t think about it.
Holidays, Birthday’s, Anniversaries too; I can just call, and say I miss you.
Card after card from my youngest son, says I miss you dad and I want you home.
We’ll make it through like we have every time; we don’t give up, we’re just not that kind.
I took an oath and I made a vow, Soldiers don’t quit and I sure won’t now.
At times it is hard and I don’t understand, but I’ll carry on and I’ll do all I can.
I write this poem down on my knees; please dear God, give me the strength.
America the beautiful, America the great; please turn around before it’s too late.
I love you so much and I’ll give you my life, if this path that I’ve chosen demands such a price.
Please make it worth it, keep our country worth saving; fight for the values that this world has taken.
Return to the Christ, our Savior and King; that right there is the #1 thing.
And I’ll fight the fight day after day, protecting our Freedom and the American Way!

So you wanna know what war's like? That's the best answer I got. That's what it's been like for me.

 

[Jwill]

Ray, thanks for doing what you do and for giving us glimpse into that world. I'm excited for you to get back onto American soil so you can see that family of yours! Hats off to those hunttalkers that sent the care packages. You're welcome in our camp anytime.

 

[Don K]

Thank You for everything . Words just seem so little for so much that you have given..........

 

[bmack]

There is just something about our American military and specifically our special forces that is really kick ass.

I have so much respect for all of you who served our country. A good friend of mine in a PJ who served on numerous tours overseas. What he has seen in combat and who he's been able to help save is really amazing.

My goal is to get him out hunting this year as he's developed a new hobby and has shown a lot of interest in killing his first elk.

Thanks again for a small glimpse into your world.

 

[Gerald Martin]

Loads of respect for you and those whom you serve with, Ray. If nothing else comes of your efforts and sacrifice, know that your words and posts here have caused me to hold my children closer and try to be a better father myself. God bless you as you adjust back into civilian life.

 

[MNElkNut]

I certainly enjoyed your posts and my already great admiration for the folks in our military grew even more.

Ray, thank you for your service and I appreciate beyond words what you have done for my family.

 

[ashersdad]

I have taught my 2 boys when they say their prayers every night to pray for the soldiers that are risking their lives to protect our freedoms and way of life. From our family to yours, we say thank you and God bless you and your family.