COVEY RISE MAGAZINE TIME AND PLACE TO REFLECT | COVEY RISE MAGAZINE

STORY BY MATT SOBERG | PHOTOGRAPH BY JOHN HAFNER

The fleeting hours of the sun at that time in that place were comprised of varying moments of struggle and elegance, all in equal parts. A girl in her late teens walked the rolling grasslands with determination in her legs and wonder in her eyes and hope in her soul for what may come. Her gloved hands firmly held an over-and-under shotgun given to her by her father, a tool that was loaded and at the ready. She wore a tin-packer hat to hide her face from the sun. And from underneath, the brutal wind fiercely blew the long, blonde hair behind her.

The flatlands of Central South Dakota lack the topography to impede such conditions. Pheasants restrain their instinct to fly in untamed winds. Hunters almost step on birds to flush, yet fail to hear the cackle when they do. But when the game takes wing, feathers catch the fast air with that signature, flowing, long tail waiving goodbye at the escape, turning to a mere blur in a heartbeat on the horizon. Despite the difficulty, the girl remained steadfast, determined to succeed.