Honing Some Skills

I'm trying to piece this whole Africa thing together and nine days out of ten, it's incredibly overwhelming. I'm at a point where the disadvantages are at the front of my mind the majority of the time, and inadequacy starts to settle in. I don't have what it takes. Yet. I couldn't walk into Africa and tell it to hire me to show tourists around its lands and parks. Not yet.

We're trying to think more constructively about this. I have more to gain, more to do before I take a step of action and physically go to Africa. Since I'm a random white foreigner trying to work abroad, we're piecing together skills that I can hone now that I will (or may) need a leg up on either. First Aid. Bartending. Japanese Language. French Language? Networking. Knowledge on Wildlife Taxonomy, Ecology, and Behavior. If we prepare me adequately, I'll be ready to be taught in the field.

Current lesson: firearms.

Many safari companies require a rifle certification. I'm not sure I could fight off a lion with my bear hands to ensure the safety of some safari-goers (maybe I should look into extreme cagefighting?). I would need a scare tactic, and a rifle is some good insurance.

So in the meantime, we're going to get me comfortable handling a weapon. This, my friends, is when it's beneficial to be married to a Gunnery/Ordinance Officer. Score. We went over the four rules of gun safety until I was blue in the face, and made plans to go to a gun range.

I've only been shooting once in my life and I only remember one thing about it: I was terrible. I was an awful shot. So going into the range yesterday, I wasn't expecting much from myself. I started a .38 caliber revolver and did pretty well. When I switched to a 9 mm pistol, I think I had a special moment with the gun. How romantic. I got familiar with it, raised it, and shot the X for the first time. WOO! I put the gun down immediately, and caught my breath. It was so exhilarating. My husband rushed up because he thought I was overwhelmed by the recoil. But I stopped out of little-girl-jumping-around excitement. It was a tiny hurdle overcome. Yes, Africa is far away and I have my work cut out for me. But at least I can shoot a gun. I can hit the X. And I did better than I thought I would. Hopefully, I'll be saying that a lot in the next few years.

Baby steps will get me there. The slow preparation is painstaking, but the small victories will pull me along.

 

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