What Shooting Skeet Taught Me About Life

Ever since I was a little girl, the men in my family have been hunters.  You know how you teach little kids the sounds that animals make?  Well, when my dad asked me what the dead deer said, I leaned my head to the side and stuck my tongue out to the side.  Yeah.  That's how much I have been around hunting.  I even went deer hunting a few times as a kid and teenager.  It was after I had to help gut a deer that I realized, I didn't want to hunt deer.  I have nothing against hunting, I just can't handle blood, so I decided to leave the hunting to others in my family.

However, in the past few years my dad picked up bird hunting with his best friend.  This past summer, that friend abruptly passed away.  It was hard for all of us, but I know that my dad misses him immensely.

Since staying home, I have started to break down whole chickens to save some money.  At first, the sound of the bones breaking  and dealing with the innards bothered me, but I have gotten used to it.  This got me thinking that maybe I could handle bird hunting.  I thought that it would be a good way for my dad and myself to spend time together, and it would be a good way for my dad to remember his friend.

But before I could go hunting, I needed to learn to shoot a moving target.  Hence, skeet shooting or shooting clay pigeons if you don't know what skeet is.

Despite growing up around all of these men that hunted (and even my mom now), I never tried shooting skeet.  I was always too intimidated.  I didn't think that I would be any good at it.  And I wasn't at first.  While, I still wouldn't call myself an expert marksman, I have started to hit more than I miss.

The first time we practiced, my dad showed where and how to hold the gun.  (However, it is a little different for men and women...if you catch my drift)  He also told me a few tricks to use when shooting so that you hit your target.  But the wisdom that he shared that was the most true was that you will find what works for you.

He was right.  It's hard to describe.  Somehow, while practicing you find that sweet spot.  There is a place located around your armpit or shoulder that the stock of the gun just seems to naturally fit.  You find a position that your feet feel good in, strong and sturdy.  And even though I tried the tricks that my dad told me, eventually there was just a voice in my head that said, "Now," when I was shooting.  And it was after I started listening to that voice that I started hitting my target time and time again.  My shotgun holds three shells at a time, and on many tries, I hit my target all three times that it was my turn to shoot.  Something had clicked.  My stance was comfortable, the gun felt right, and most of the time that voice that said, "Now," was right.

The same principles can be applied to life.  As you grow and learn, you will find what works for you.  You will find that sweet spot where you are able to stand strong and firm in your beliefs.  With practice, you will start to hear that voice in your head that says, "Now."  Your intuition will talk and you will learn to trust it, to trust yourself, and to trust the Lord that put that voice inside you.

It takes practice, but if you never step up to the line and take the chance, how will you ever learn what you are capable of?  Like I said, I still miss when I'm shooting, but every time we practice, I miss less.  In life, there will be times we listen to our hearts and miss.  We won't get the job.  That person turns out to not be the one.  Your opinion turns out to be wrong.  But the more we practice and step up to the line, the more we'll hit the target right out of the sky.

"If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time." -Zig Ziglar