DON'T SHOOT YOUR EYE OUT!

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Samuel Bendet
  • Torch Magazine
RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  When I was 13 years old, I used to transport my Crossman pump-action BB gun with mounted scope in a hockey bag on my moped. I learned how to shoot by setting up a box with a target in the hallway in my house when my parents weren't around. I "perfected" my technique on the streets of my northwest New Jersey neighborhood shooting at my friends.

These "war games" were fun, but in hindsight, very dangerous.

And, today, as a parent, it definitely isn't the way I want my son to learn to handle a weapon. While the worst I ever suffered were some stings through my Levi Strauss blue jeans, I knew I'd been dumb and lucky. We all were. None of us lost our eyesight to an errant BB.

Thankfully, when it came time for my 6-year-old son, Harrison, to sample some different weapons in early December, he did so under the safety umbrella of a Cub Scout adventure camp in San Antonio. The anticipation of shooting slingshots, bows and arrows, BB guns and air cannons was nearly more than he could stand. The same kid I have to drag out of bed every morning to barely make it to school on time woke me up at 5 a.m. He was fully dressed and ready to go even with the sun still nowhere in sight.

As we arrived at the camp, Harrison, who like many kids his age can get easily distracted, was wide-eyed and focused as the range masters went over the proper handling and safety instructions on each weapon. All the boys wore ballistic eye protection.

I had to laugh when the instructors took the extra safety precaution of making the Scouts use dog food as the ammunition for the slingshots and fired soft stress balls out of the air cannons. Many of the parents scoffed at the dog food, with one dad indignantly asking, "Where's the ball bearings?"

But the boys hardly seemed to notice the biodegradable ammo. They were having too much fun.

Harrison missed his target the first few times he tried to shoot the BB gun as he scrunched his face as close to the rear sight as he could. I told him to squeeze, not pull, the trigger and control his breathing. As I gave him instruction, it reminded me that as parents, we are often mentors and teachers for a variety of tasks. Even when you don't think they're paying attention, children are watching us and learning ... the good and the bad stuff.

When my son finally hit the target, he couldn't contain his excitement.

"Dad, can I get a BB gun?"

I didn't want to put a damper on his 
enthusiasm, so I remained non-committal by saying, "Well, you never know; it's almost Christmas."

But inside, the parent was coming out in me full force. And what I really wanted to do was echo the sentiments of Santa Claus when Ralphie, from the classic movie "A Christmas Story," asked him for an official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model air rifle with a compass in the stock:

"You'll shoot your eye out, kid."