My father sent me a text message Wednesday night telling me about how much fun he had at a DoD event where they shot some military weapons. I smiled a bit, because a few years back my parents thought I was nutters when I started buying guns. I reached a point where I realized I wanted to know how to own, operate, and care for a gun in every category, and as my fortune grew so did my desire to educate myself. I learned about history, about mechanics, about ammunition, about the manufacturers, and about the science behind it. Yes, guns are scientific, and that's what hooked me. Surprisingly enough it brought my family closer together, and except for my neices who are too young, I am now a cause celeb in the family. My mom refers to me as the Armory. I wrote my dad back and invited him to go again since he wants to compare a few guns for a personal purchase, and we'll use the holiday to do that so I can continue to be an educator while we bond as father and son.
Shooting together got my family interested in marksmanship, and surprisingly they all seem to enjoy it. When my sister got ready to join the military, I took her out to show her the ropes in advance of her training so that she could show up all the guys at officer training, and she liked it so much we went twice more before she left. One of the things my kid brother wanted most to do when I went up to visit him in June was go to the range and shoot. He'd shot before, and he was very good, but we were there for like four hours! Even my mother decided at 60 that she should learn how to operate and shoot a gun in case she ever needed to; I guess all the gun crimes that go across her desk at work made her decide better to know how and not need to than need to and not know how. This year, I took some of my hiking buddy's family out, and except for his seven year old niece, everyone had fun.
As the fun increased, they got interested in gun ownership. Aside from my father, nobody else in my family owns and ever has owned a firearm. However, some of our family skype sessions and in person discussions involve discussions about what I bought, why, and how I feel about it. Some of them are really eager to fire the .44 magnum, but they're all cautious, and I get that; I only bought it because it was too good to pass up. When my dad looked into a .357 magnum Winchester 92 but couldn't stomach buying one, I told him that I'd buy it and let him shoot it, and so far everyone who shot it LOVES the rifle. In fact, I apparently do a little dance when I hit things with it, and my best shot yet was 3/6 at 150m. My kid brother really enjoyed my M4 (I do NOT like the gun) and told me that he really had fun. When I told him how much the fun cost, he shivered at first, cocked his head, considered it, and then a few weeks later talked to me about getting some guns anyway. Since he likes the gun I like the least, I offered to sell him mine to save him money and get rid of it at the same time. After my paternal grandmother's death, my dad tracked down the family heirloom gun that ended up with his youngest brother. Since my uncle never shot it and never actually intends to, he surprisingly passed it to my father who already bought ammo for it! When I was there for dinner on Sunday and he indicated confusion at how to clean it, I turned him to Youtube, and he's already found a good guide and torn it open to service it since we know it hasn't been shot for years.
Guns get us together. When my sister came to visit this summer, she contacted me ahead of time and asked if I could squeeze in time for "family bonding" which is apparently now code in our family for a trip to the range. She's coming back in November for a friend's wedding and expressed an interest in going out again if time permits. Meanwhile my dad wants to go out again to spend time with me. Growing up, it was always difficult for me to find ways to bond with my dad, and so I am gladly paying whatever it takes to enjoy his company and hone my skills. We talk about ammunition, about targets, and apparently about times we go out with other people. I have now taken coworkers out to the range and a few students to help them make good choices and educate them about gun operation. I find myself chatting up strangers at the ammunition counter and talking to people I see who carry, and when people found out I shot an orange at 30m with a lever action .357 magnum, they thought I was a god.
Yet the government wants to take away not only the weapons but this link that guns created between members of my family and the family of man. I know lots of foreigners don't understand why Americans are interested in guns, but that's probably because years of feudalism and despotism rendered them sufficiently submissive that they prefer avoidance over animation because the latter might cost them everything in a moment. Beyond the guns themselves, we talk about the time periods, the people who made and used them, and their mechanics. My dad has always been interested in tools and how things work. My brothers are interested in the outdoors. My mother is interested in protecting herself from criminals. I'm not sure why my sister enjoys it, but I enjoy going with her, and it gives us a concrete reason to spend time together and furnished pictures for almost everyone's family movie this year. I know it's cliche a bit as a male in the west, but my best friend knows I'm not doing it because I'm one of those nutty people. I use the ones I have to teach others about operation, features, safety, history, ammunition, and marksmanship, and although not qualified by my degrees to be a firearms instructor, as an educator it's an extension of my day job to help other people own and operate firearms. Moreover some of the pieces I own are impressive just as pieces of art. Most of all, they brought my family together, and for that I thank Sturm, Ruger, and Company.
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