Target Practice

It has been a crazy week. Crazy good mostly...2 field trips, tie dying jack-o-lantern t-shirts with friends, new tires on the van at 50% off. JP isn't feeling well though, and I can't help him. We have 2 soccer games tomorrow to get through, and then the week is over. There were several times that I thought my chest would explode, but it never happened. Whew!



Today, although I had lots of other things I wanted to get done, I spent a couple of hours at the shooting range with my Dad. I'm glad that I went, I really need the practice. The last time I shot my rifle, I did this to myself:



(Actually, JP made me take a couple of shots after my stitches came out, just to let myself know that I could still do it.)

Today, we were able to get it sighted pretty well, in preparation for the up-coming hunting season. I haven't been out hunting yet, even though I took the PA prerequisite Hunter Safety Course 3 years ago. This is my revenge for all of the plants the deer have eaten out of my flower beds over the years, and all the pear trees they have knocked down this fall while rubbing their antlers.

I realized how high strung I was while we were there. Even though I was wearing hearing protection, I jumped every time someone else fired. I had to make my muscles relax and keep my eyes open while firing since I was bracing for the pain in my eye like 3 years ago. I tried the mindfulness exercise, and focused on the cool breezes in the green grove we were gathered in along with 3 other hunters. I smelled the whiffs of sulphur after my father fired his rifles. I heard the pop of the rifle a boy at the end of the row was shooting, and then heard a "whoof" as it hit the target 50 feet away.

I'm not saying that shooting targets is my new favorite past time, but I actually found it enjoyable. I felt empowered at the end of the day: I shot at least 12 rounds without shooting my eye out! That's alone is enough to propel me through the first part of next week!