Older folks have a wealth of knowledge to impart.
The first two old people I recall listening to were my grandfather and the old lady who lived across the street. The old lady was over 100 and no one listened to her anymore so when I would listen she would talk about her childhood. Because I listened I now can say I knew someone who watched the troops march off to the Civil War and who served dinner to Jesse and Frank James on their way to Northfield, Minn.
My grandfather told me stories about being a pro baseball player in the early 1900s and how he learned to shoot well enough to become a decorated marksman in WWI.
Another old man taught me how to catch trout - not fish for trout. I'm now the best trout fisherman I know, except for my son who is a bit faster than I am these days.
Yet another old man let slip that he won the pistol class at Camp Perry three times. He became my coach for three years and guess what - I'm one helluva pistol shot and I shoot a 1911.
And another builds me custom, hand-tooled holsters for every gun I buy just because I like to sit and talk.
Don't ever overlook an old person just because they are old.
Earlier tonight, at supper, I was talking to an old man. He decided to tell me about his unit being pinned down by a sniper in WWII. He spotted his position and saw open ground that would have to be covered to continue sniping at his unit. He perched an '03 Springfield on some rubble and waited. He saw a bush that seemed to move from time to time. At 500 yards, with open sights, he squeezed off a shot at the base of the bush and put a round through "That Nazi's helmet."
Because I listened to old folks I know people who were there at the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, WWI, WWII and beyond. My short lifetime spans a century and a half of knowledge. I would never have it had I not listened.
As to how many guns an old man has, we turned one room into a vault. It takes me three months to clean all the rifles. Thankfully, the wife keeps track of the inventory and cleaning rotation. I don't hide a darn thing from her, except my trade plans...
When I've made a trade she just updates the inventory list. She has given me one restriction - rifles take up too much space so I'm only allowed to buy/trade for handguns now. She's right.
