A Widow's Protection- Don't Mess with Her

After my husband died, and I was ready to go through his belongings, I had to decide what to keep and what not to keep. I came across his .357 magnum. It had been locked in our safe for a half a year before I could make a decision of what to do with it. When my husband first bought it, I was horrified and mad. WHAT DID WE NEED A GUN FOR? In my opinion, we didn't have the money and there was no sense in purchasing one. But he loved this gun!!

I peered into the safe at the firearm. I didn't even know how to use it. There was some sense of power of having it even though it scared me. The idea to keep it seemed more logical now for protection. It was the three of us girls living by ourselves now. We had our Chow and I had a .357 magnum. The girls never knew about the gun. It remained locked away and out of their reach.

I decided that if I was going to keep it, I better learn how to shoot it. I called a local gun shop and arranged a class. The instructor tried to get more info from me but all I knew was that it was an automatic. "Well, when you come in," stated the instructor, "just make sure it's unloaded." "Umm...I don't know if it's unloaded," I replied. "And I have no idea how to check." I was petrified of it and thought that if I held it the wrong way, it might accidentally go off and shoot me!

Cautiously, I placed the gun on the front passenger's seat while I drove to the shop. "You have a .357 Magnum," the salesman said with a smirk, "and it's loaded." So what should I have said...I didn't know because I'm a woman. I am woman! And don't mess with me! I made up my mind that I was keeping it and would use it to protect my family if I had to!

The class had 2 sessions. The first session consisted of a video and how to operate the firearm. The following week, we'd go to a shooting range. I was unable to attend the 2nd session but my friend Trish suggested I practice with her uncle who frequently target practices. This sounded like a good idea, so a few afternoons later, I met up with her uncle for target practice. I was amazed at how well I shot. This boosted my self-confidence even more.

After this, the gun remained untouched in my safe for maybe another 7 years. Another spring cleaning episode caused me to rethink if I should keep it. I probably forgot how to use the darn thing! I had given up on the protection plan it originally offered so I gave it to my brother-in-law, who was a policeman. The only protection I needed was God's protection. And there's none more bullet-proof than that!!