Simo woke up early in the morning.
Most of his brothers and sisters were still asleep. Outside, the ground was covered in snow.
He got dressed and stepped outside into the cold air.
His father, Juho Häyhä, was already working. The animals needed food, and the farm always had work to do.
Simo helped carry water and feed the animals. After that, he helped bring in firewood.
Farm work was part of everyday life.
When the work was finished, Simo finally had some time for himself.
He walked toward the forest near his home with his rifle.
Simo knew the area so well because of shooting practice and hunting. Today he wanted to practice again.
He placed a small object far away in the snow to use as a target. Then he got in his position and raised his rifle.
Simo took a slow breath.
He aimed carefully.
Then he pulled the trigger.
The shot hit the snow right beside the target.
Simo lowered the rifle and walked to go check it.
He missed, but barely missed.
He returned to his spot and tried again.
This time he waited a little longer before shooting.
He slowed his breathing.
Then he fired.
The bullet hit the target.
Simo didn't smile or celebrate, he just went back to the target and set it back up. Then got back in his position. He reloaded the rifle and kept practicing.
He fired again.
And again.
Each shot helped him improve.
Simo spent many hours practicing like this. Sometimes he shot at targets. Other times he hunted animals in the forest.
He also spent a lot of time skiing.
During the winter of Finland, snow covered the land for many months. Skiing helped him move quicker in the snow. It also helped him get used to the cold.
Once he was a teenager, Simo had spent many years practicing with his rifle.
He joined the Finnish Civil Guard, a group that trained citizens to defend Finland if needed.
Through the Civil Guard, Simo was able to be in shooting competitions.
So he joined some of them only so he could see how good he really was at shooting.
In one competition, shooters had to fire 100 shots at a target 300 meters away.
Simo focused carefully on each shot.
When the results were counted, he had hit the target 93 times out of 100.
That score won him the competition.
Over time he won even more contests.
Soon his home had a lot of trophies from shooting competitions.
But Simo did not think about the trophies that much.
What mattered to him was getting better.
For Simo, shooting was not about pride.
It was about practice.
And he planned to keep practicing.