All of mine are 100 percent replaceable, except for one.
My grandfather died when my mother was sixteen from complications stemming from his time served in the Korean War. He did not leave behind much, other than a mortgage that my grandmother struggled with, a few children, his pipe and smoking accessories (that my mother has to this day) and an old Winchester single shot .410 gauge shotgun. A model 20, IIRC.
So it sat on an ancient gun rack in my grandmothers house. She remarried and had another child. And with the other child (my uncle) and a new husband came more firearms. A model 70 in .308. An old Ithica pump gun. A marlin .22. All the typical long arms you will find in a North Carolina home.
About the time my grandmother was dying from lung cancer my uncle began his addiction to both prescription pills and crystal methamphetamine. He began to steal from her, both cash and the guns that were sitting around the house. She knew that most were gone and would never come back. My brother was out in the area for vacation and she gave him the .410 with the promise that it would be kept safe and in the hands of someone who would care for it, cherish it, and pass it on to his children. She told him to give it to me. She knew she didnt have long and she would probably never see me again and she wanted me to have it.
I have that gun today, and always will, at least until my son gets it. While I dont keep it at my house (dont trust some of the folks living around me-moving this month), I take it out and just hold it sometimes. Rub it down with a light coat of oil sometimes. It reminds me a lot of her, and makes me wonder what my grandpa was like.
My grandmother passed away two years ago this past november, and it is nice to have something to remind me of her and the time spent at her place.
Sorry for any typos. Getting a little misty eyed here.
Maurice
