Papa's Rifle

It was a few weeks before my wife and I were slated to depart on the biggest road trip of our lives when I received a phone call from my Uncle Skip. We were planning to visit him on the East Coast leg of our trip and spend a couple of days in one another's company. I can remember the phone call vividly as it wasn’t just a normal “hey let’s get together” kind of call. Rather, my uncle had something special up his sleeve that took me by surprise and began a countdown that would lead up to an incredibly special moment in my life.

Uncle Skip spent his career as an aircraft mechanic for the US Navy, so he’s quite the history buff when it comes to our country’s past with war involvement and the equipment that was used to defend the freedoms we have in America. His collection of war memorabilia is absolutely impressive to say the very least. Even if the implements of battle are not your thing, there’s something really special about seeing the passion and knowledge one possesses about a certain subject. Nestled in his collection is a very special rifle, an M1 Garand that would belong to my grandfather had he lived to collect it himself. During our visit, my uncle asked me to fire the rifle with him for the first time in over 29 years.

I was a little over a year old when my grandfather passed away, so my memories of our time together are fairly faint except for the small number of photos I have of us together. The rifle came a few months after he passed, leaving his son to receive it on his behalf. At this point, the rifle had only been test fired by the manufacturer to receive it’s safety proof marks to be released. Upon receipt, my uncle made the decision to keep the rifle stored away safely until I was old enough to fire it with him.  The sheer patience of waiting nearly three decades for any event in life is a small miracle, simply making the significance of this experience that much greater. 

After spending the morning sharing some stories and laughs over breakfast and coffee, we chatted about our plan to head to the firing range to give Papa’s M1 the ceremony it deserved. We loaded up in the Jeep with all the equipment we’d need and headed to the range. By this point the anticipation and excitement to fire the rifle was coursing through my veins unlike anything I had ever felt. Because I didn’t get to know my grandfather like I have always wished, my ideals of him are of the highest respect, so this occasion definitely brought some emotion to the surface. 

​Once at the range, Uncle Skip raised the rifle to his shoulder, aimed it downrange, and squeezed the trigger. Hanging from the rich brown stock, a tag labeled “this rifle was dad’s” gently swayed in the wind. I felt the energy of my Papa enter the space as my uncle gently laid the pristine rifle down on the bench next to him. It was finally my turn to experience opening the time capsule for myself. 

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I don’t have a lot of experience with firearms, much less I had not fired anything as powerful as the M1 in my entire life. Until this moment, my background consisted of shooting some .22 caliber rifles and 12 gauge shotguns when I was a Boy Scout. My uncle assured me this was a great rifle to fire and due to its weight and the size of the recoil spring inside that it wasn’t going to be quite like I may have expected. My first shot was from a seated position to get a feel for what I was up against, immediately followed by multiple standing rounds thereafter. I laid the rifle down on the bench after firing through eight rounds and grinned back at my uncle knowing that my Papa would have been so happy to share in the moment with us. 

The joy I felt from experiencing this special moment with my uncle is something I’ll cherish forever. I can’t honestly say that going down to the range to shoot any given firearm is one of my favorite things to do, but when the occasion is that of something so special, no matter your convictions, you should certainly seize the moment and see the deeper meaning within. As people, learning about our heritage and sharing experiences like these with family gives a deeper understanding of who we are as individuals, and provides us with the knowledge and tools we need to become better characters as we move forward in life. After all, knowledge is power and that’s something that we can all benefit from.

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