My neighbor’s son and his wife were divorced earlier this year. Grandma takes care of the three grandkids during the day when the kids are on school vacation and breaks. The 10-year-old boy often comes over to my place. He likes to fish in the pond and pet the horses. He’s a good kid and fun to be around. Yesterday the boy rode his bike over and found me in the workshop cleaning and oiling a couple of handguns.
The boy is no stranger to guns. He shot his first buck this year when his dad took him deer hunting for the first time. He looked at the handguns and said that he had never shot a pistol and asked if we could shoot one.
I took the S&W kit gun and showed him how the revolver worked. I started with the first rule of safety then he picked it up and continued through the list. His dad has taught him well. I loaded spent .22 brass and had him practice dry firing both single and double action. He was eager to learn and quick to grasp the information.
We went out in the woods to the range and I loaded one round at a time and let him shoot targets. After a while I had him load the cylinder by himself and shoot. He was on cloud nine.
Today, on her way to pick up the kids, his mom stopped by my place and read me the riot act. How dare I teach her son shoot a handgun! I was putting her son in danger! I explained that the boy hunts with his dad and she explained that I’m not his dad and she does not agree one iota with her ex on guns or hunting. She’s right; I’m not his dad. I’m not even a guardian. I was wrong. I apologized and told her it won’t happen again. She said if it does, she would not let him come over any more.
I know that he will ask again to go shooting and I don’t like being put in the middle of family matters. I could lie to him and say that I don’t have any bullets or I don’t have time, but I won’t. I will just tell him the truth.
I feel sad for my little buddy. He’s going through uncertain times. He gets lonesome and bored being at grandma’s all day. He calls me his adopted grandpa. The other day while we were sitting on the dock fishing he asked me if his dad was a looser. I was puzzled by the question and asked what would give him that idea. He replied that he overheard his mom say it to her boyfriend. I told him that I knew his dad since he was a boy and there isn’t a finer man around. He would do for others before he would do for himself. I told him that I hope he grows up to be the kind of man his dad turned out to be. I think that pleased him.
He showed me a small pocketknife that his dad had given him. He’s real proud of it. He asked that I don’t tell his mom because if she found out, she would take it away.
The boy is no stranger to guns. He shot his first buck this year when his dad took him deer hunting for the first time. He looked at the handguns and said that he had never shot a pistol and asked if we could shoot one.
I took the S&W kit gun and showed him how the revolver worked. I started with the first rule of safety then he picked it up and continued through the list. His dad has taught him well. I loaded spent .22 brass and had him practice dry firing both single and double action. He was eager to learn and quick to grasp the information.
We went out in the woods to the range and I loaded one round at a time and let him shoot targets. After a while I had him load the cylinder by himself and shoot. He was on cloud nine.
Today, on her way to pick up the kids, his mom stopped by my place and read me the riot act. How dare I teach her son shoot a handgun! I was putting her son in danger! I explained that the boy hunts with his dad and she explained that I’m not his dad and she does not agree one iota with her ex on guns or hunting. She’s right; I’m not his dad. I’m not even a guardian. I was wrong. I apologized and told her it won’t happen again. She said if it does, she would not let him come over any more.
I know that he will ask again to go shooting and I don’t like being put in the middle of family matters. I could lie to him and say that I don’t have any bullets or I don’t have time, but I won’t. I will just tell him the truth.
I feel sad for my little buddy. He’s going through uncertain times. He gets lonesome and bored being at grandma’s all day. He calls me his adopted grandpa. The other day while we were sitting on the dock fishing he asked me if his dad was a looser. I was puzzled by the question and asked what would give him that idea. He replied that he overheard his mom say it to her boyfriend. I told him that I knew his dad since he was a boy and there isn’t a finer man around. He would do for others before he would do for himself. I told him that I hope he grows up to be the kind of man his dad turned out to be. I think that pleased him.
He showed me a small pocketknife that his dad had given him. He’s real proud of it. He asked that I don’t tell his mom because if she found out, she would take it away.
