We packed up the family and travelled to my Uncle John's farm yesterday. We always have a great time eating, laughing and, well, doing farm things. There is something visceral about being on a farm, mountains, lakes, clean air, whatever, that makes men want to pitch a tent and live off the land. My father and uncle have always been avid hunters and fishermen and have lived the lifestyle. Me, not so much but I grew up with it so I understand.
There were three generations of Malgioglio men on the farm that day so you know there was going to be some muscle flexing. Matthew is now at that age where a boy transitions into a man. On the farm that means shooting guns and driving some heavy equipment, so, that's what he did.
It wasn't really planned, it just happened. It stared innocently enough with some BB guns. Malgioglio men have always been good at shooting and Matthew is no exception. Since he was doing so well, we decided to break out the heavy artillery, the .22 rifle. Okay, it's not really "heavy artillery" but it is to a 12 year old boy.
After 20 minutes of safety instructions from all of us, it was time. He loaded the rifle, took aim and hit the target. Well that opened up the flood gates. Guns came out from every where. Shot guns, pistol, rifles, it was the wild, wild west all over again. I'm sure the neighbors were thrilled about that but we didn't care, we're men. After we shot up the place, we moved to the vehicles. In particular, my uncle's ATV.
Matt looks forward to riding on it ever since he was a little guy. It was the main reason that he wanted to go to the farm. One year, the ATV was broken and when Matt found out, he decided it was time to go home. No ATV, his day was done. Anyway, we rode the ATV as usual, me driving and Matt holding onto my fat as I jiggle down the rode. This year, I let him drive, with me on the back telling him what to do. I'm not sure why I decided it was time. Maybe it was the smell of gun powder in the air or my man's intuition, (yes, men have intuition too). He did a great job driving us around, we were laughing so hard that we almost puked. This trip was definitely a testosterone fest and Matt loved every minute of it. Maybe next year I will teach him how to chew tobacco. On second thought, maybe not.
We packed up the family and travelled to my Uncle John's farm yesterday. We always have a great time eating, laughing and, well, doing farm things. There is something visceral about being on a farm, mountains, lakes, clean air, whatever, that makes men want to pitch a tent and live off the land. My father and uncle have always been avid hunters and fishermen and have lived the lifestyle. Me, not so much but I grew up with it so I understand.
There were three generations of Malgioglio men on the farm that day so you know there was going to be some muscle flexing. Matthew is now at that age where a boy transitions into a man. On the farm that means shooting guns and driving some heavy equipment, so, that's what he did. 
It wasn't really planned, it just happened. It stared innocently enough with some BB guns. Malgioglio men have always been good at shooting and Matthew is no exception. Since he was doing so well, we decided to break out the heavy artillery, the .22 rifle. Okay, it's not really "heavy artillery" but it is to a 12 year old boy.
After 20 minutes of safety instructions from all of us, it was time. He loaded the rifle, took aim and hit the target. Well that opened up the flood gates. Guns came out from every where. Shot guns, pistol, rifles, it was the wild, wild west all over again. I'm sure the neighbors were thrilled about that but we didn't care, we're men. After we shot up the place, we moved to the vehicles. In particular, my uncle's ATV.
Matt looks forward to riding on it ever since he was a little guy. It was the main reason that he wanted to go to the farm. One year, the ATV was broken and when Matt found out, he decided it was time to go home. No ATV, his day was done. Anyway, we rode the ATV as usual, me driving and Matt holding onto my fat as I jiggle down the rode. This year, I let him drive, with me on the back telling him what to do. I'm not sure why I decided it was time. Maybe it was the smell of gun powder in the air or my man's intuition, (yes, men have intuition too). He did a great job driving us around, we were laughing so hard that we almost puked. This trip was definitely a testosterone fest and Matt loved every minute of it. Maybe next year I will teach him how to chew tobacco. On second thought, maybe not.
