Yesterday our friend K. took Neal and me to his gun club to try out a very special gun: my great-grandmother’s .22 Winchester single shot rifle, circa late 1920s/early 1930s. My dad learned to shoot with this gun, and when my grandfather’s Alzheimer’s started to get bad in the early 1980s, my grandmother asked dad to get the old guns out of the house. I don’t know how the decision was made, but this gun was given to me.
My dad knows that the rifle hasn’t been shot since he brought it home, and he figures it may not have been shot since around 1956.
K., who is an expert in these matters, cleaned up the rifle, tested it, proclaimed it just fine for me to shoot, and like that, the rifle is back in action.
I’m no Annie Oakely, but I’m pleased with my early shooting attempts. The rifle is light, easy to use, and feels like it was made for me. I can’t wait to get back to the shooting range. Oddly enough, the gun makes me feel deeply connected to my family history.
What has made you feel connected to your history?
How neat! I don’t see myself as someone to go to a gun club, but I certainly would under those conditions and I imagine I would feel more connected to my ancestors.
I feel most connected to my paternal grandmother’s line of the family tree when I cook and bake traditional Swedish things and when I enjoy coffee or cardamom scented things. I haven’t as yet discovered good connections to any of the other lines right now. But of my 4 grandparents I was closest to my paternal grandmother so I’m okay where I’m at right now. Although now that I think about it, gardening is something the other 3 grandparents did/do a lot of so I suppose I could connect with them better if I had that mindfulness when I went out to the garden. Thanks for causing me to think about such things!
Cool! I don’t consider myself a “gun person”, but I have gone out to target practice before. I too, found an interesting (to me, at lest) family connection, my great-grandmother and great-aunt were archers. I like to think that it’s form them I got my naturally good shot.
I think that’s awesome! I have a 44 magnum Smith and Wesson that belonged to my brother and it feels like a very strong connection to him. I think I feel most connected to my mom when I bake a pie. I picture her doing all those same things and it makes me feel quite close to her.
ooh, this looks like great fun. my one and only experience shooting was with a high-powered rifle, shooting skeet. it was a terrible way to learn about the mechanics of shooting, but i’m a much better person for having the chance to learn.
i connect with my grandmother through baking her cake recipes. i’m sure she left an ingredient out of each one, though.
whoa! I never pictured you with a rifle – but who knew?! you’re a natural! (I am glad there wasn’t a squirrel close by 🙂