Amen already

Haven’t been to a church potluck in years. Lots of years; but I do remember them. Ours were usually held in the multi-purpose room of the local elementary school. The multi-purpose room was used mostly as a cafeteria although there might have been other uses such as dances and graduations.
The church had a small congregation, but with potlucks, the numbers grew. Seems the prospect of feeding your entire family cheaply had its appeal. One family in particular rarely attended church, but come time for potlucks they were almost always there. Four of them with sometimes one or two guests in tow. They always brought a small dish of scalded potatoes. If that’s the correct name. In return for bringing that small dish; the six of them would gorge themselves with free food. Praise the lord and pass the forks.
For some reason, the food was always very slow in being served. If we showed up at four in the afternoon, it seemed as if we rarely ate before six. Seemed that way, but memory being what it is… It seemed to have taken a long time for this hungry boy. We weren’t allowed to use any of the playground equipment, so we kids just sat around hungry and bored. About the time we had reached our limit of waiting one of us usually suggested we sing our hungry song.
I can still remember the words to that song. That infamous song was meant to annoy the adults in charge and prod them into bringing out the grub so we could satisfy our hunger. We would gather up and break out into chorus:
Here we sit like birds in the wilderness, birds in the wilderness. Birds in the wilderness.
Here we sit like birds in the wilderness, WAITING TO BE FED.
It rarely had the desired of effect of getting the food to the tables, but I like to think that it was at the very least, annoying. Either way, it was fun and broke up the monotony. Eventually the food was placed on the serving tables and we non adults of course, were relegated to the back of the line.
But first, of course, came Grace. My family always said what can loosely be referred to as Grace before dinner at home; “bless this food and make it nourishing to our bodies.” Short, direct and to the point. Mostly short. But Grace performed by a minister with a captive audience, oh lord, was worthy of being quoted in the scriptures.
It started out simple enough, thanking the Lord for the food and guests, then launched into a dissertation of thankfulness that included the weather, the school board for allowing us use of the room, to automobile and tire manufacturers for their part in getting everyone there. After what seemed a half an hour, we would start to glance around and make eye contact. Yikes. We tried to control ourselves, but to no avail. Stifling laughter can be difficult at best. Faces turning red, shoulders shuddering uncontrollably. Mercifully, the grace would finally come to a conclusion.
Then it was time to dig in. The food always outstanding and plentiful. The desserts decadent and loaded with sugar. Almost worth the wait for us birds in the wilderness.

Gun and US

We love our guns. They hold a fascination for us. Guns are part of what defines us as a nation. From the Revolutionary War to every war we’ve been in; all the way back to the Old West to modern day drive by shootings. Guns and America. Despite what the fear mongers might be saying, the two are inseparable. No matter who might be President.
Our constitution guarantees our right to bear arms. I have no quarrel with that concept. I don’t spend any time pondering what the founding fathers had in mind or wondering about the presence of the famous comma. But gun ownership is a lot like owning and using a car. With both comes the enormous burden of responsible use. Cars used irresponsibly can cause damage, injury and even death. Just like guns. Of course with a car you sometimes have a chance to hit the brakes and/or swerve to avoid an accident. But once a bullet has left the barrel, there are no brakes or swerving to be done. It stops when it hits something. Or someone.
Over the course of the last few months I’ve attended several Carry Concealed Weapons (CCW) classes. A friend is the instructor and asked if I’d care to join other students. Probably because he wanted to give me a different perspective on gun ownership. I’m glad he did. The class was informative, well taught and quite an eye opener. He covered the effectiveness of the different firearms, in relation to self defense, from rifles, shotguns to pistols. He discussed the stopping power and the practical and legal use of those firearms. I won’t go into detail as to his recommendations, that’s for another day.
What struck me about the students, gun owners, was the utter lack of knowledge of the four basic gun safety rules. The mentality that because someone has been shooting for years that they are competent enough to own and safely operate a gun. The “I learned how to shoot from my Uncle” thinking. Equally disturbing, it appeared that many of the guns hadn’t been cleaned in years and I’m guessing that the majority of the students wouldn’t even know how. Yet, they can and do legally own as many guns as they can afford. It’s their constitutional right.
I don’t have a quarrel with the Second Amendment. So be it. But if you own a gun, for crying out loud, get to a gun safety class. And take everyone in your family, especially your children and grandchildren. Forget about what you think you know about shooting; forget about what some friend or family member taught you. Go learn about that gun, rifle, shotgun or whatever firearm you may possess. Take a gun safety class, preferably one that includes practice on a firing range. Don’t worry about the cost. What is preventing a fatal accident worth? And learn about proper maintenance. You won’t be sorry.