Last week, my mother called me and told me that if I wanted to take a CCW (conceal and carry) class, I needed to let her know asap because my aunt was trying to set up a class for us for that weekend.
I had been wanting to take the CCW class in order to apply for my permit but I hadn't really given it much serious thought. My aunt and mother bombarded me with the news about the class out of nowhere. Naturally, I was taken aback. Like I said, I had been wanting to take the class but I wasn't sure if I was even being serious about it. After all, I would have to pass a class about firearms to even apply for the permit--and I didn't know much about guns.
I mean, I've been around guns my whole life. Many of the men in my family and around me are hunters...and I definitely love having my freezer full of venison. It is much more lean than hamburger meat and can become quite a delicious substitute for beef in many different recipes (chili is especially good with venison). I've gone with my Dad on hunting expeditions, though I've always assumed that I could never kill an animal. I would go with my Dad into the woods, help him set up his tree stand, and sit with him until it got dark, keeping a watchful eye out for any deer. Usually, after the first two hours or so, I indulged in a nice nap. It's pretty obvious that I'm not a born killer. I love nature, so being out in the woods is always calming...but I just can't see myself sending Bambi's Pap-Pap into the next world...and thus into my freezer.
Anyway, back to the topic at hand...the CCW class. Why would a nice young lady like myself want to carry around a deadly weapon anyway, right? I know what you're thinking...it's dangerous...especially since I told you that I don't know much about guns. This is the reason: I am a nice young lady...and I'm also pretty small. I don't weigh a whole lot so if it came down to being attacked by some crazy person, I wouldn't be able to defend myself. I've already had a rather unpleasant (I'm not going to go into details) experience during my first semester of college.
I'm serious about wanting to protect myself. I don't want to become a statistic, and I definitely don't want to be plastered all over televisions if some crazy person kidnaps me for who knows what reason (though we all know what they want, right?). I can take a more hands-on approach with my own safety. I want to be alert at all times...and I want to be able to defend myself if (God forbid) a situation arises. I've never wanted to just carry around a gun because I wanted to be "cool," or because I want men to think I'm a tough chick. Ideally, the point of carrying around a gun is NOT to use it at all...it is purely there for a worst case scenario.
I'm not going to go around and advertise that "I'm packing heat". In fact, if I do get my permit, I don't want anyone to know about it. People that advertise that they have it are just asking for someone to break into their house to steal the gun that they're bragging about. Because my identity is pretty well protected in this blog, I don't really have to worry about sharing my experience.
In fact, I want to share it because I want to encourage other young women to think about how they would protect themselves if something bad were to happen. Applying for a CCW permit is definitely not the best option for everyone, but everyone should have a plan of action if something bad does happen to them. It is better to be prepared, always. Remember the fire/tornado drills we thought were so stupid and annoying when we were younger? Imagine if your school never held those drills and a tornado or a fire really happened. Would you have been prepared on your own for that? Would you know where to go or what to do? How would you deal with the panicky feelings you would be having? These are the questions that women of all ages need to ask themselves in relation to being attacked or robbed. As women, we tend to think that everyone is inherently good...and we want to make connections with other people and "fix" them if they are "broken". Unfortunately, the world is not like that. There are people out there that are just bad--if they want to hurt you, they will have no problem doing it. I know this from first hand experience.
Hi, Kayla,
ReplyDeleteI felt a big culture difference while reading your article. When I was young, like your age,
I always tried to be aware of the possible dangerous situation and tried to avoid them. I never lived alone, and relatively my house was in safe and good area in Tokyo. So I was in a pretty protected environment. Maybe I was spoiled and not enough cautious. Now that I am in the U.S., I have to be more aware of the dangerous situation.
I completely understand. There are a lot of people here that criticize the ones that have their CCW permit. They think that guns are only bad. The problem is, this is true in the sense that when bad people get guns, guns are bad. If more people are out there stealing guns or carrying them illegally, then there is a bigger need for people that can legally carry firearms to have a means of protecting themselves. CCW people go through a course with a test they must pass...but that is only the beginning. We also have to apply with the Sheriff's office. This means that an extensive background check is done on us to make sure that we have no criminal records. There are many people out there that think that anyone can get their CCW...meaning that crazy people or bad people can put other peoples' lives in danger by having the permit. But this just isn't the case.
ReplyDeleteI don't live in the worst neighborhood, but I live close to the bad sections of my town. I frequently have to drive through places that aren't very safe at night.
I took a lot of consideration into whether or not I would need to have a CCW permit. I never want a situation to arise in which I will actually have to defend myself. Having the CCW permit is more of a precaution.
I've heard that Japan is a lot more safe than the U.S. You probably have never even been exposed to a firearm. Because I grew up with a family of hunters, being around guns isn't something that is a new experience for me. I think that a lot of people that have only been exposed to movies and tv shows where guns are used don't really get the right exposure. Guns are dangerous, but they don't have to be. If they are handled safely and legally, they can save your life in a bad situation.