May 30th - I give a presentation to my daughters class

May 30^th

So…today was quite interesting.

My daughter Chaney, who is a dedicated fifth grade academic is studying the American Revolution.  Her school does a “Walk through the Revolution” program where the kids dress up as famous colonial personalities and convert the school into a Williamsburg type deal for a day.

Of course this wouldn’t be complete with out some mention of firearms!

Chaney told her teacher that I owned a number of historical firearms, among them a Pennsylvania Long Rifle from 1790.  (Ok…it’s a little post Revolution…but it is still old).  She thought it would be cool if I could come in and do a little show and tell.

Well…apparently her teacher thought so too.

Now, the idea of showing up at a public school with a rifle…historical or not…kinda scared the hell out of me, so her teacher was  kind enough to get permission from the principal and send me an email expressly inviting me and my rifle.

So this morning, with Chaney dressed as Lafayette and sporting a tri-cornered hat, I accompanied her to school.  In each hand I  lugged a possibles bag, EMPTY powder horn, and a rifle case containing my Pennsylvania Long Rifle.

What struck me most…and inspired me to write this blog were the kids.

I was sequestered in the classroom as the kids assembled outside prior to the school bell.  Soon they began to file in…all dressed in colonial costumes.  Their teacher was waylaid outside by another adult and I could see her through the window engaged in a conversation while the principals voice came over the loud speaker.  The kids seemed generally disinterested in the announcements that he was giving…and in fairness, most of what he was saying was general administrative stuff that really didn’t apply to them anyway.  All the kids sat in their desks talking with one another until…..

The principal asked everyone to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance. 

This they heard.

With the teacher still outside, these kids without prompting stood…removed their tri-corner hats and bonnets, and belted out a full throated pledge to the flag.  (This even included the one kid dressed as King George…which I found kinda funny)

Immediately after this, the teacher came into the class, introduced me, and had me begin my little show and tell.

After a few minutes of wowing them with my vast knowledge of armaments and military strategy she asked the kids if they had any questions for me. 

Boy did they…

They wanted to know everything about the gun:…how does it shoot?…how accurate was it?…what do you do if it “jams”?

Then the questions turned to more current subjects:  When did guns start using “clips”.  Do you hunt with that rifle?...and my favorite: What exactly was the NRA?

This last one threw me. 

I glanced at the teacher with a look of concern on my face.  After all this was her class…I was a guest…and I really have no clue about her politics…finally lets face it…this is a public school in California.

She nodded at me and I explained that the NRA was first and foremost a civil rights organization protecting our right to keep and bear arms as codified in the 2^nd amendment.  They also are tool for research, as well as a safety and training organization.  The teacher even repeated at the end of my soliloquy that they “protect” the rights of the people.

The kids thanked me and gave me an applause, and Chaney gave me a big hug as I said goodbye to the class and Chaney’s teacher. From a showmanship standpoint I’m not sure how well my presentation went….believe it or not I did get a little bit nervous, and there was a lot more that I would have liked to tell them,…but I was thrilled that Chaney’s teacher allowed this to happen in the first place!

There is hope!