I’ve stared down the barrel of a gun. I was only 10 years old, but the memory is one that refuses to go away. I remember it so clearly. I’ve got goose bumps just remembering.
A family shopping trip was spoiled by a couple of madmen. We were driving home after a long day of shopping. Our car was packed with shopping bags. Inside my mother, my father, two of their friends and I were chatting away. We were on a back road so there were no cars in front of us and no cars behind us. My dad suddenly went quiet, and the car began to slow down. I looked up and followed his gaze. Out on the road stood 4 men, holding AK47s. They came up to windows and ordered us to step out of the car. My father shielded me with his body, hiding me from view. The men told us to do exactly as they said and we would probably make it out alive. One of them stepped in front of my father, pointed the gun at him and said, “Get in the car” My mother began sobbing, pleading them to take the car and leave us there. Her pleas fell on deaf ears. The other man turned his gun towards me and said, “My my…what a pretty little girl.” My father stiffened. “I’ll go with you, just leave her alone.”
“Sorry old man, but we call the shots here. See this gun, it means I’m in charge. So if my buddy says he wants your little girl to come along, then she’s coming. Both of you get in the car!” With the gun he shoved me in the car. Hands behind our backs we were tied. A blindfold came over our eyes and a gag to cover our mouths. We were thrown on the floor of the car. Suddenly we were moving. I could here them talking.
“Let’s kill them”
“There’s no need, they don’t know our names and they haven’t seen our faces”
“I want the little girl”
“Forget that, what we need to do now is get away. That’s why we brought them. If we have them the others (my mom and 2 friends) won’t report it right away and we have a better shot of getting away”
“Still we can’t take them with us all the way…the car we have to get rid of the car”
“There’s a ditch near here, lets throw them there and leave the car further up the road”
In Unison “LATIN KINGS!!”
The car stopped. We were yanked out. They kicked my dad down the ditch first. Then my blindfold was removed. They guy in front of me pointed the gun right at me. I avoided his gaze and focused on the gun. He licked the side of my face and said, “I’ll come for you someday”. It was almost as if time had stopped. Not a sound around and though it must have been only a couple of minutes it seemed like an eternity. “Hurry Up!” came the command from the car. Down the ditch I went. I couldn’t see my dad. The ropes were beginning to cut into my wrist. The tears felt hot upon my skin and I thought I was going to die there. Then I heard him. He had somehow managed to get himself loose and was calling out to me. I tried as best as I could to make a sound through the gag. Miraculously we were able to find each other. He hugged me tight and let me cry.
“I’m so proud of you honey. You were strong and you kept daddy strong. Just a little more and we’ll be all right. Can you keep on being strong for daddy” I nodded and tried to stop the tears from coming down. “Good girl, come on, lets get out of here.” We walked to the nearest police station and reported what had happened. We were told to wait there. That another party had reported the same incident. When I saw my mom again none of us had any words to say. The three of us hugged and just cried. It had been close but we had made it.
I had nightmares for the next two months. In my dreams the man with the gun would appear. Never his face, just the barrel of that gun and that horrible voice. It took awhile for me to get over this experience. I kept telling my parents I was fine, that I didn’t need to talk to anyone about it. It’s over I kept saying…why re-live it. Still I hated going out on family trips…I refused! One night I woke up in a cold sweat and screaming
“HE’S HERE! HE’S COME BACK FOR ME! HELP! DADDY HELP!”
My dad rushed in the room. He held me for hours and calmed me down. After that they insisted I get some counseling. I though only crazy people go to a shrink, but you know something it really helped. To this day I hate guns…I hate how some people have easy access to them and are able to cause terror. I wish guns didn’t exist!
The page you were looking for no longer exists
allaroundgirl posted on Aug 10, 2006
| views: 298
Comments
-
kdarticles said on Aug 10, 2006....
wow, I can't even imagine what that was like for you. I am sorry that ever happened to you. I am glad you and your family got out okay. I hope you can be at peace some day. I can understand why you would hate guns. They can be scary. -
Fire_Star_88 said on Aug 10, 2006....
Very shocking experience, thank God you and your family weren't harmed. -
PrplDrgnFly said on Aug 11, 2006....
I use this a lot so sorry, and y'all might hear it from me one too many times. First off I am so sorry that that had to happen to you, but think of it this way, that has made you a stronger person in the long run, and you will be able to help someone later on down the road with that experience. I too have had a gun pulled on me. A shotgun to be exact by my own father at the age of twenty-one. Do I hate him for it, yes. But I have to tell myself that it has made me stronger. I think you would be a great spokes person for gun control. Please look into it!!! -
Indiefilm said on Aug 11, 2006....
So what would have happened if these guys hadn't had guns? Would that have made them better people? or would they have just used knives or some other weapon instead? While I think that it would be great if there weren't any guns at all (or bombs and larger weapons such as nukes), the simple fact of the matter is that they do exist. outlawing them wont make them go away, on the contrary, it will make selling them even more profitable than it already is, and will have the opposite effect of what you think it will. Criminals will still have guns, the only difference would be that honest people would lose the right legally own a weapon for either hunting or self defense. Whats more, there was a reason that the American Constitution has the second ammendment. The people who founded the US didn't want its people to lose the ability to keep the government in check in the event it became as oppressive as the brittish rule of the day. While I wish I could agree with the sentement that humans have moved past the need for such things, a simple glance at any newspaper or headline involving world events readily disproves that. We as humans haven't (unfortunetly) progressed far enough along to resolve all of our conflicts with words, and there is still a need for the right to bear arms and to defend oneself. -
bloc said on Aug 11, 2006....
"While I think that it would be great if there weren't any guns at all (or bombs and larger weapons such as nukes), the simple fact of the matter is that they do exist. outlawing them wont make them go away, on the contrary, it will make selling them even more profitable than it already is, and will have the opposite effect of what you think it will. Criminals will still have guns, the only difference would be that honest people would lose the right legally own a weapon for either hunting or self defense." This simply isn't true. Have you ever been to a country with strict gun laws. I used to live it europe and the scenario you've created didn't happen. I'm not a gun control advocate, but I hate it when americans create these myths the could easily be tested if they look outside of america. But instead they keep holding on to these myths. -
bloc said on Aug 11, 2006....
@Indiefilm Your scenaria also has a giant logical hole that doesn't take examining another country to see. Most gun crimes are committed by organized criminals who have the ability to traffic in illegal arms. They are committed by normal people who go over the edge because of anger, alcohol, or something and happen to have a gun near by. -
Indiefilm said on Aug 11, 2006....
Bloc, America doesn't have the history of gun control that Europe does. Think about it for a few minutes. What would happen in the US if guns were outlawed and people were required to turn in all their guns? there are currently a lot of guns in the US, and I doubt that everyone in the US would turn them in. I doubt most of the gang members around would willingly turn over the illegal guns they already own. Hence my statement about criminals still having guns. Given 10-15 years, yes, there would undoubtedly be less guns around in the hands of criminals so there would be fewer guns and more buyers. supply and demand economics, less product = more value. Please note, I didn't say that there would be more gun crime, or more guns on the street. I said that they would be more valueable. As for your "I hate it when americans create these myths the could easily be tested if they look outside of america. But instead they keep holding on to these myths." othe countries like; ||{1}|| or ||{1}|| perhaps? -
bloc said on Aug 11, 2006....
"outlawing them wont make them go away, on the contrary, it will make selling them even more profitable than it already is, [b]and will have the opposite effect of what you think it will.[/b]" What is the opposite effect? Weren't you trying to say that gun crime would be worse or that the streets would be less safe? Please clarify if I misunderstood you. I don't know what your trying to say by linking to google searchs. If you want to make a point, please make it because I'd love to discuss it. I lived in germany for 3 years and they have strict gun laws. They have virtually no gun violence compared to america. Street thugs in germany do not usually have guns. Street thugs in america usually do. However there is an even more interesting issue. Canada has gun laws very similar to ours yet they have very low gun violence rates, similar to germany. Your right that guns aren't the problem. I agree, but the assertion, which I think you were making, that things would be worse with strict gun control is a myth. As I said before I am no gun control advocate. It's a bit of a non issue with me. -
Root said on Aug 13, 2006....
Your experience sounds traumatic indeed, and I'm glad you were able to get help right away to process it. Humans do seem to have an incredibly violent side to us, along with needs for power, control, greed, anger, and so forth. Guns just make it too easy for all that emotional, primal stuff to unfold into a bloody chaotic scene. I'm with you on the need to limit these rather unfortunate "advancements" in technology. Although I daresay if 25% of more of us were meditating, and praying, and working actively for peace, the principle of ahimsa (nonviolence, or causing no harm) might begin to shift the vibrations. -
Indiefilm said on Aug 14, 2006....
Bloc, "What is the opposite effect? Weren't you trying to say that gun crime would be worse or that the streets would be less safe? Please clarify if I misunderstood you." The point I was unsuccessfully making was that the short term effects would likely be worse than the current status quo in terms of criminal violence. My main reasoning on this is, as you said, "Street thugs in germany do not usually have guns. Street thugs in america usually do." In the US criminals already have guns, and they already use them. If I was a criminal and knew that owning a gun is now illegal for the average citizen, I'd become one hell of a lot bolder in robbing people, less risk of those pesky poeple with concealed weopons permits, or who sleep with a shotgun next to the bed. As for the links, here is an interesting artical from the BBC regarding Englands ||{1}|| A pertinate quote... "The Centre for Defence Studies at Kings College in London, which carried out the research, said the number of crimes in which a handgun was reported increased from 2,648 in 1997/98 to 3,685 in 1999/2000." -
PrplDrgnFly said on Aug 14, 2006....
To bloc, I am living in Germany and I love it here and when I found out about their guns laws I was very amazed, and want to know why in the world it could not be like that in America. I think it is not because there are too many political people that would be against it. If we really wanted it to happen it could. To IndieFilm, Please open your mind to a peaceful world. Talking about gang members not turning over their guns, oh it would so happen!!! I am currently looking for a place to raise my child with a good school district that no kid or hope that no kid would bring a gun to school because they were pissed!!! It's all about gun control!!! As for how do we defend ourselves, what ever happened to a good ol' fashion fight, and why does it always resort to violence. The crime rate here vs. the states is impecible!!!! (I hope I spelled that correctly)!!!! -
bloc said on Aug 14, 2006....
@indiefilm ""The Centre for Defence Studies at Kings College in London, which carried out the research, said the number of crimes in which a handgun was reported increased from 2,648 in 1997/98 to 3,685 in 1999/2000."" There is a difference between correlation and causation. I've already made the point that I don't think guns are the problem and gave canada as an example. Here's a good question. Do you think that there should be a limit to the types of weapons people can own? -
Indiefilm said on Aug 14, 2006....
Bloc, the link was more of a clarification of what I was going for, rather than an attempt to continue the arguement. And that is a good question... yes. I don't think that anyone should be able to walk down the the local pawn shop and pick up a nuke, or an anti-tank round. There has to be some gun control. Which sounds like a bit of a contradiction to my previous statements, so I'll explain. I think that poeple should be able to pass a safty test (or have proof of such in the form of a licence), go to a store, pass a criminal background check, and buy a gun, for self / home defense, or hunting purposes. As to what types specificly... I'm going to have to do some thinking on that. As much as I've agrued the point, it's more about not losing my right to own a weapon (should I ever choose to buy one), than any need or desire to own one to begin with.
Comment on "Guns...The reason I hate them!"
Related Posts:
starchini
posted 3 days ago
| views: 37
|
I know its not even thanksgiving yet. But I wanna remind everyone to begin thinking about there New Years resolutions.... read entire post
CayenneMan
posted 2 days ago
| views: 99
|
The enchantment before a beautiful day... read entire post
Me-Myself&I
posted 2 days ago
| views: 74
|
These are the things i give thanks for everyday!... read entire post