"Don't over burden yourself."

Thanks for the story, Carl. I didn't get to spend much time with my grandfather before he passed.
 
mmm, fresh rabbit and hot cocoa by a campfire. Man, I wish my grandpa had the chance to hunt with me. He was looking foreward to it. Darn, I miss him.:(
 
Nice, I enjoyed it.......though I'm always suspect of stories where small children speak in complete sentences that perfectly set old men up to deliver wisdom. ;) Now, if we could modify it just slightly:

.....Tommy Burke was saying how his dad has a whole case full of guns."

"Yeah, well, some people just like to have bragging rights." the old man said. " You never knew your great grandpa, boy. My dad. He always said to never have more than what you really need. To be good with a few basic tools is better than being mediocre with many. Dad never had much. But he knew what he was doing with the ones he had. You have to be careful in life, not to over burden yourself with all the stuff you don't need. It'll slow you down, dilute life's experience. In other words, all things in moderation."

"I want a whole lot of guns."

"Were you even listening to what I just said?"

"And money..."

"Kid, listen to me..."

"And video games..."

"Dammit, snap out of it!" *whack*

Boy runs back to tarp shelter, crying, having learned his lesson not to differ with Grandpa's opinions once the whiskey flask comes out.



Maybe I'm just cynical. And I do like braggin' rights, especially through being very proficient with many tools. :D
 
I think about stuff like this all the time.

I bought my kids their first real pocket knives. Small Schrade trappers. I bought a big one and small one for my self. The 18 month old might be a little young for it. But when the 6 year old can safely open and close it, he will appreciate it.

I gave him his first "knife" when he was about 3 years old. I took an old BUCK cross lock that I had not used in forever, and ground the edge and point off. So he could help me "cut" stuff (before that, he would follow me around with a butter knife).

My dad taught me to shoot, camp, fish, ride motorcycles etc. He learned from his dad (Boeing mechanic who left his bowing job at the height of their manufacturing so he could go run the family farm when his own father fell ill). He ran his farm, and a mechanic shop as well. Raised their own live stock, and did their own butchering (even the animals they named and played with for years).

I am sad my brother and I did not grow up in an age where we could just grab our bed rolls, rifles, some cans of food and head for the hills.

Although my brother and I did have our own rifles as kids. We were raised with the "starter kit" a Ruger 10-22, and a Marlin 30-30. After that, we had to buy our own.

I bough my first handgun before I was 12 years old (used Ruger Mark I, target barrel). Bought with the money I earned mowing lawns. Second Pistol I bought was an AMTIII in .30 carbine.

I grew up with a dad who taught me how to shoot and maintain my guns, and trusted me enough to use them unsupervised. We were allowed to spend weekends out in the country and take our rifles with us!

Good times!

I would like my own sons to have some of that feeling as well (the trust, and self reliance). My own father has taken the grandsons (including my 6 year old boy) camping, fishing, and riding 4 wheelers out in the mud.


I will tell you one thing though, my gramps was legendary! Golden gloves boxer. He was not a large man in statute, but if he laid hands on you, you were hurting! Even when he was old, and I was a strong young buck, he could put those gnarled hands on you and you were in instant pain! Once I went out to get him for dinner. He was up to his waist in a tractor, fixing something. I saw him tighten a big bolt down with his bare hands. I thought that was funny, and mentioned it to my dad. He bet me I could not get it back off with a wrench. He was right! Course, he tightened it up later with the wrench too, but that was a running thing with my grandpa. He would tighten something down with his hands so tight, I could not remove it with a normal tool. Grandpa did not say anything. He just went over to a small container of gas and washed his hands in gasoline to get the grease off, and headed in for dinner. No nice smelling lava soap (had that stuff at my old factory job).

Grandpa used to trim his nails with his slip joint. He could fix anything he owned, and I mean anything (back when things were still made to be fixed). In one visit, I once saw him tear apart a tv, a toaster, a boat motor, and a heavy diesel tractor, in the same visit. He put them back together and they worked. My whole life if anything broke, or needed mending and Grandpa was around it was fixed. Often he would make parts the parts, or re do the wiring.
 
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