What has Appleseed Taught You?

[Son of Isaac]

This answer is different for everyone.  I am constantly amazed by the diversity of lessons I learn at Appleseed.  Some will say "marksmanship," some will say, "history," others will say, "the message of Liberty."

What did Appleseed teach you?  What lessons did you learn?

[Son of Isaac]

I have been awakened by RWVA, Project Appleseed.  My life will never be the same.

~TravelPatriot
Awakened By:
RWVA, Project Appleseed

[George Hacker]

Concerning marksmanship, finding and using my NPOA was the biggest breakthrough.  Better trigger control is what fine tuned my existing skill to shoot as a expert.

Appleseed taught me that the colonists were ordinary people who banded together to resist the oppression of a superpower.  They marched together and drilled so when they were called into action, Lord Percy realized they were a formidable military force to be reckoned with.  Also the stories made the individuals come alive so they weren't just names and dates.

Proud, and grateful, to be an American,

- ShadowMan

[Sly223]

To start changing the world by begining with the Rifleman in the mirror.
Since I got off the couch I have been taking the Riflemans challenge Daily.
I have influenced a lot of people by my actions, by improving myself!

[Kosciusko]

in order, as they come to me:

- owning a rifle doesn't mean you are a Rifleman.  In fact, you  probably  _aren't_
Fear not,  get thee to an Appleseed.  Then, at least, you are on the right path.

- I am not alone, there are others out there who care enough about this country to give unselfishly of themselves

- there are more of us than I could have ever imagined, in fact, we are legion

[BlueFeather]

I was surprised to stumble onto  this thread... because I had been looking for a similar thread I posted years ago...

I've been with Appleseed for 4 years, so my take is a bit different.  Sure, the shooting, a change in attitude about this country, but there are other deeper things that Appleseed helps you realize --

1. The most important -- you are in service.  When you help run or help promote Appleseed, you are in service, in service to the organization and to your students.  Remembering that helps keep ego away and and helps to be a better teacher.

2. Discipline -- Appleseed teaches discipline and the value of having a plan and working that plan.  Once you and your students get that, you realize you can apply that discipline to anything.  I often mention this in the benediction.

3. Health -- this is what I got out of my first Appleseed -- I was out of shape and my youth had passed by without my noticing, but I was not so far gone that I could not make up for it.  So I have -- I changed what I eat to simple, unprocessed foods, and I work out seriously.  I am finally in comparable shape to the first instructor I met (PHenry) who could put his elbows on the ground in seated (that was easy) and could do a cossack squat side to side (can just about do that, even with a bad knee.)  Hey, if we are to be self-sufficient and proactive, that means we have to be in shape and walk the walk.   Appleseeders, sadly, still reflect the average American, at least 1/3 of whom are obese.  To me, part of being enlightened is being healthy, so that was a great turn-around for me.  Some of my Appleseeding friends have followed me down this path, but precious few.

4. Education -- I always read a lot, but I read more now, and I look at the Appleseed connection in everything I read -- for instance, Mark Steyn's most recent book Armageddon, has a quote from Dennis Prager, that the greatest threat facing America today is that we have failed to teach this generation what being American truly means.  He has another quote from a liberal dutch writer, that few of us have ever had to defend our freedoms, though we have comfortably enjoyed them.   Good Appleseed material, that. 

5. Questioning preconceived notions  -- maybe I should have put this earlier in the list.  When you tell a newbie shooter that they will hit a 500 yard teeny tiny target with an M1 Garand by the end of the weekend,  they are doubting you big time. When they actually hit that 4 MOA target with the Garand with iron sights, their belief system is shattered.  How many other ways can we apply this same thing?  How many times do you underestimate someone? Can Appleseed help change your prejudice?  We all make snap judgements about people and events, so it is healthy to reassess once in a while.

So, you see, Appleseed is a seed that can grow into all sorts of things.  Some seeds germinate fast, and others may take years.  The big thing is that you took this turn in the road, and it will lead you down a totally new and unexpected pathway, with a lot of fantastic people that you never knew existed. 

I hope you don't consider this a hijack, but this seemed an opportunity to broaden the scope of this discussion.

The founding  fathers got it right...  several years before 1775, they started a movement to be less materialistic, as they saw Europe's influence as clouding their judgement and softening them. We have become soft, of both body and mind. Appleseed shows us how soft we've become, but as long as we can still move, we can fix that.