This is a 4-part series submitted by reader Steven, where he takes us through his journey to becoming a firearms owner.
Maybe you, or someone you know is considering becoming a gun owner for the first time. I very recently started to consider the idea of owning a firearm for home defense and personal protection. Over the course of these few articles, I will share my journey – the initial event that sparked my desire to own a gun, decisions I had to wrestle with, discussions I had with my wife, and the outcome of my process. Check out the first article in this series to find out how my story starts. My hope is that my story may help you, or a friend who is in the same boat.
Part 2 – Am I Ready?
News of yet another shooting and more victims had caused me to ask myself what I would do if faced with a similar situation. I began to consider something I really hadn’t thought about before – owning a gun.
The seed had been planted. I finally admitted to myself that the world was growing increasingly dangerous and that I was woefully underprepared to defend my family and myself. While I was becoming more favorable to the idea of owning a gun, my wife was not. She made it very clear that she was not onboard with buying a gun. She felt we’d be safer by simply adding a home alarm system.
I knew I had some work to do to win my wife over to the idea of buying a gun. In the meantime, I wasn’t completely sold on the idea and had to answer some of my own questions.
- Am I adequately prepared to defend myself and my family against an attacker?
No. I was not. In this day and age, chasing an attacker out of your house with a golf club wasn’t likely to work.
- Am I prepared to kill, if necessary?
That one might seem crazy, but if you are considering owning a self-defense firearm, and you haven’t yet realized that it would equip you to seriously injure someone or end their life, then you need to think about it. In pondering this, I understood that my absolute last resort would be pulling the trigger, but if it’s between choosing to end an attacker’s life, and allowing them to possibly kill me, or my wife and children, I’ll pull the trigger. I hope I never have to make that decision, but I’ve mentally prepared myself.
- Am I responsible enough to own a firearm?
Owning a firearm comes with great responsibility. You must be committed to safe storage, safe handling of the weapon, training, educating yourself, understanding and abiding by many different laws, and more. I pondered each of the aspects of being a responsible gun owner and felt very comfortable with my own level of responsibility.
- How would I manage the relationship my children have with firearms?
My children are young. Very young. If I were to own a firearm, there would be no reason for them to even know about it at their current age. As they grow older, I will introduce them to firearms at the right time. For now, there’s not even a reason to bring up the topic.
These are just a few of the questions you may ask yourself if you, like me, are coming to realize that owning a gun might be right for you. If you aren’t able to come to terms with questions like those I’ve mentioned, then owning a firearm may not be right for you, and that’s 100% OK.
At any rate, I’d answered my own questions about owning a gun, and I was more in favor of it than ever before. Up next… Winning my wife over to the idea. Stay tuned…
