Some of us can remember seeing that long Christmas package under the tree and the excitement of waiting to open it. It had to be a 22 rifle, or at least a BB gun. Hopefully this scenario will be repeated for many youngsters this Christmas and the tradition will continue. Maybe this is a good time to remember that with the gift of a gun, comes the responsibility of teaching safety, responsibility, and ethics to the one who receives this gift. No one is born with the knowledge needed to own a gun. The most enjoyment of having a gun is knowing how to use one safely and pride in knowing that you have finally reached an age when you are deemed old enough to be taught how to use and own a gun responsibly and safely. Whether you are a parent or grandparent, teaching safety, responsibility and ethics, and seeing a youngster learn these things gives satisfaction to you and the youngster. There are few things as memorable as that first gun.
Resources
Some of the resources to help teach a youngster about gun safety and enjoyment can be found from NRA programs and publications and from our own state conservation department. If you find a Hunter safety class for your youngster to attend, go to the class with them. You will show them that they and the class are important enough for you to be involved with them. Other resources can be found online. A resource that should be readily available is you. Shoot with your boy or girl. Insist on safe and responsible gun handling. Unsupervised youngsters and guns are a poor combination. Whether a BB gun or cartridge gun, using them unsupervised must only be permitted after adequate learning, maturity, and responsibility have been learned and demonstrated. Besides the teaching and discipline, there is the enjoyment of shooting and being with the youngster. Shooting and teaching your child is always time well spent.
Perhaps the occasion of giving a Christmas gun is a good time for us adults to do a review of our own sense of responsibility and ethics. Kids will spot a do as I say not as I do kind of ethics in a heartbeat. We in the United States have enjoyed the Christmas rifle tradition for many years, but without teaching our children responsibility, ethics, and principles, the rights and traditions we have enjoyed will not endure. We might also remember the importance of the season by acknowledging who’s birth we celebrate and why we give gifts at this time of year.
All of us here at Craig’s Outdoor Sports hope you have a merry Christmas and that at least some of us will have that long magical package under the tree.