By J.H. McDuffee

When I was a boy, Sunday afternoons were spent at granddads. After lunch the men went to the front porch to tell stories, usually about fox hunting and quail hunting - the stuff that makes a kid"s ears tweak to every word. Granddad (Jake C. Attaway) was a heck of a shot in his younger days. Story after story of 14 quail with 10 shells, 12 quail with 9 shells. He had a real talent for seeing two birds cross and pulling the trigger on his LC Smith at just the right moment. These stories seemed to stretch the truth. However, after we moved into the community where he lived many people confirmed those front porch tales. Of course this made that boy extremely proud.

Years passed and finally hunting age had arrived. It was great for me, but for granddad the years of working in the coal mines had taken their toll on his hips. We never experienced the thrill of a hunt together. How nice it would have been to experience a quail hunt with him, or for that matter a trip around a sporting clays course. However he did buy me my first gun at age 11. A Christmas present I will never forget. The little 20 gauge Stevens single barrel was by far the best present ever, one that had a lasting impact on a young boy"s life.

Dad started me off on squirrels and dove hunting. Squirrel hunting was a lot of fun and gave dad a lot of time to further cover gun safety. The doves however were the best. After several boxes of shells and not much success you just wanted to get better. However what was more important at the time was having enough shells to get through the hunting season. Cutting grass and working odd jobs would net a couple of cases of shells but that was never enough. After those were gone I would start working on granddad"s and finally dad"s. It is amazing how much fun you can have with a few cases of shells. During hunting season, most every day after school was spent in the outdoors with the little 20 gauge.

Dad spent the first couple of years with me in the woods, teaching safety, life, nature, and above all, respect for those things. What he taught me is still important and needs teaching today. However, who is teaching the children to respect nature and the value of human life? It is not guns that cause the problems we are seeing occur! In many schools you cannot read the Bible, pray, or teach absolute right and wrong. You wonder why kids will kill for a pair of basketball shoes? They lack the moral rudder or, as Bill Bennett put it, the "guard rails" to steer them through life. Most of my generation got this at home and in school. I wonder if it is being taught in either today?

Fast forward to today. Open land for quail hunting is all but gone. The pine plantations have taken the fields where crops were planted, and the threat of lawsuits, have added to the problem The changing face of America has all but spelled the end of hunting as I knew it as a child. Even the many dove shoots of the past shrink to fewer and fewer each year for the same reasons. How can a dad or mom still enjoy the outdoors with their son or daughter? Sporting clays is how. It took my son hounding me for two years about sporting clays before I gave in and found a course. Jim had been hunting since he was seven and like my granddad was a very good shot.

It only took a few visits shooting sporting clays and we were hooked. This was a sport we both loved and was one we could spend time together doing. That was five years ago. You could not put a price on the time we have spent together. Even the ride to and from shooting gives you time to talk - something most of us don't do enough of today. Moms and dads, when will you have the time for conversations with Johnny or Sue about acorns, pine trees, and nature? Or about the fact that human life is important and special? Because sporting clays courses are usually in or along wooded areas the opportunities for teaching abound. You might see a turkey, a deer, or maybe an eagle. Things totally foreign to a ballfield or soccer field. Sporting clays is an individual sport that teaches children self confidence - that same self confidence that causes a person to succeed in life and not go down the wrong path.

Sporting clays has taken the place of most quail and dove hunting. If you haven't tried it, please do. It is a sport you can enjoy with friends and family. Sporting Clays has become a great fund-raiser for charities. The Boy Scout shoot in Birmingham raised $80,000 this year.

Try it. Take your son or daughter this week. And you grandparents who are able take little Johnny or Sue shooting some time. They will treasure those memories many many years after you are gone.

Every now and again the little 20 gauge is taken out and used. Oh, the flood of memories! So for a fun-filled day, take a trip around a sporting course, and when you do, expect to meet a lot of nice people.