Literally, right now, where is your gun? Your self defense gun. Where is it? It should be on you or within reach. Is it? When you store it, is it ready to go? Can you get to it quickly?
At the end of last year, a New Mexico resident was stabbed to death by two men trying to break into his car. He was a concealed carry holder and normally carried his gun. He was woken early on a Saturday morning by dogs barking and went to investigate. In his driveway, he confronted two men whom were trying to steal his car, they stabbed him. The police got there in time to take his statement before he died on the way to the hospital. You can read the story here.
This sounds like a boring topic but it’s an important mindset discussion. You have to have your mind right to win the fight. First order of business; it could happen to you at any time and any place. Be ready. Have your gun.
If you go outside to investigate something going bump in the night, stop and get your weapon first. Better to need and not have then the other way around.
A couple months ago my wife woke me up in the middle of the night, convinced that there was someone in the house. I heard the noise but thought it was a tree branch blowing against the window. She was insistent, so I went to check. I got up, opened my small safe, grabbed my gun and my light, and went to look. I was right and found nothing but a tree branch against a window, but still had my gun.
In the one in a thousand chance that I would actually find someone in my house, I had my gun. You should, too. If you are going to look for trouble, or to make sure there is no trouble, stop for a second, think about what you are going to do, and get your gun and light while you are thinking.
The gentleman’s family in New Mexico would give almost anything to see how it could have turned out differently if he had just stopped for a second or two and grabbed his gun.
If you have some training and practice, it doesn’t hurt you to bring your gun. If it turns out to be nothing, you lost a couple seconds of sleep while you put your gun back.
The same thoughts go for when you are out and about. If at all possible, carry your gun. If you can’t carry a gun, carry something else for self defense. Don’t go anywhere unarmed, always be ready to protect yourself.
I sit here writing this in my easy chair, in the middle of the day wearing my gun and an extra magazine. Please don’t be like the guy in the story above, have your gun all the time and be trained and prepared to use it.
Stay Safe,
Ben