A Christmas Story

I made this card for my Dad based on something that actually happened when I was little. At the age of 9 I became fascinated with being an archer. I sometimes carved my own bows and arrows with a pocket knife, or used my neighbor's hunting bow. This may sound a little dangerous, but I was a very careful kid. I never once cut myself with my pocket knives, as Dad showed my how to carve properly (always AWAY from the body etc..).

So anyways, for Christmas that year my parents bought me a compound bow--basically a hunting bow made up of wheels and pullies that give it extra power. Dad took me out in front of the house Christmas morning, and set up the foam target. He showed me how to pull the arrow back, and hold it correctly....but there was a problem. The bow string was set at such a weight that I could barely find the strength to hold the arrow back. I tried my best to aim, but was tumbling around, and my little muscles were giving out. Suddenly I just let the arrow fly. This was followed by the sound of breaking glass. I can still hear Dad clearly in my mind, yelling,"Holy COW, Paige!!!" with his hands on his head.

We went to investigate the damage, and saw that the arrow had gone clean through the dining room window, across the room, and feather deep into the wall. Let's just say if someone had been standing in there...well....it wouldn't have been good. The hole in the glass could have been made by a glass cutter....there was no shattering due to the velocity of the arrow.

I spent many fun hours shooting foam targets with that bow (which I still have) and the story made for great entertainment during family events.