I'll ride shotgun

Ladies and gentlemen, I have an announcement. I, Amanda, have shot a shotgun. It was epic.

There's a guy in my D&C class who I talk with every day before class starts, his name is Michael. He's one of the guys who works at the computer help desk and he's super nerdy and he drives an old toyota truck that's rusted all over and it's got big dents and there's no stereo and it no longer recharges the battery, so he has to carry around an extra one in case the one he has in his car right now dies. He's super nice. Oh Monday he and I were talking about our weekends and he told me he went shotgun shooting with his roommate. He then asked me if I had ever shot one and I told him I hadn't, but would really like to. He asked me if I wanted to go with him on Saturday since he and his roommate were having a rematch (apparently Michael whooped him) and he needed someone to go with him.

Saturday came and it was a super yucky day outside. I wasn't sure if we would still go because of all the rain, but out where we were going to go shooting it wasn't raining, so we went. It was me, Michael, his roommate Kasen, and Kasen's sister Alexis. We all rode out to the rode that leads to the civil defense caves in Michael's truck. We were pretty cozy in the front, trying to avoid having my lap crushed by the stick shift, but we managed. We got out there and Michael showed me the gun and all it's parts and how to work it and everything. He offered to have me shoot first, but I let Alexis go first so I could watch someone do it.

The it was my turn. I got the gun all loaded and before Michael threw clay pigeons for me to shoot at, we decided it would be best if I took one free shot to get the feel of the kick back and everything. It was awesome and powerful and I think I'm a little too small of a person to properly hold a shotgun. It was felt weird the way I had to position myself to be able to hold it correctly and have it on my shoulder right. But I shot it! It was super neat!

Right after I took my first shot we heard screams from down in the gully past the meadow we were shooting in. It sounded like someone was shouting "Cease fire, cease fire!" followed by screaming and crying. It sounded like little kids. Both Michael and Kasen went running off towards the gully and I put the gun down with the safety and everything on. Kasen retold the story when we got back from shooting and he said he was running so hard and praying super hard. He said when he got to where the meadow drops off, he could see two kids in the distance, both running and one holding his side. Kasen ran over to them and insisted he know what was wrong. Then Kasen saw an old man on a four wheeler with three kids riding on it heading away from the two crying ones. They were crying and running because their grandpa had left them behind for a moment while taking the other kids up the trail.

I cannot even begin to tell you how relieved we all were. I seriously thought I had shot a poor kid the very first time I shot a shotgun. My heart was pounding and I was on the verge of tears because I didn't know what was going on and some kids were screaming bloody murder. We ended up giving the grandfather directions to the caves and waved them off. But that's not all..

We continued to shoot and we were almost finished with our second time around when we noticed the storm blowing our way. Within about five minutes it got us and it started pouring rain. Alexis and I took shelter in the truck while the boys stayed out to shoot a couple more rounds, just to finish off their competition. They were just about finished when the grandpa on the four wheeler came back, this time with all the kids loaded on with him. He told the boys that his truck was a long ways down the road and the kids were freezing and soaked and he didn't want them to get sick. He said, "May we beg some shelter off you for these poor kids? I'll meet you at my truck down the road, I just can't bring them through this rain." We immediately flung open the door to the truck cab and piled all the cold, wet kids on our laps. Before we left, Alexis and Kasen had to move to the bed of the truck with all our coats in order for all the kids to fit in the cab and Michael still be able to shift gears. But we drove the long way to their grandfather's truck with four of them piled on top of me and each other. It was so cool. They were so cold and a little bit scared, but they were super cute. The wiped off the windows so Michael could see when they fogged up from all the moisture in the car. They helped up spot their grandfather's big red truck and then they all ran over to him to get inside his warm car.

It's one of those experiences you hear about or read in the New Era or something. It was so very neat. There are very few places where a grandfather would trust some college age kids (with a gun) to take care of his four grandchildren.

Overall? It was one of the best dates I have ever been on.