I have to go way back 30 years to when I was about 7 years of age, and me and my dad was out hunting..
After a long days walk my dad decided it was about time I got to try the 10 gauge shotgun, to get a feel of it.
So he found a spot where I could safely fire a shot, and told me to have a go at it.
The gun was a Marlin Firearms Shotgun model 5510 Original Super Goose 10 Gauge loaded with Magnum ammo, and it was too heavy for me to hold steady. So my dad placed his backpack on the ground and set the gun ready for me on top of it.
I went down on my knees and grabbed hold of the gun and aimed for a pine tree not too far away, with about 4" trunk size where I aimed at it.
When I pulled the trigger the gun raised so hard it went out of my hands and I rolled onto my back, but I registered the tree trunk got split in two in a cloud of woodchips just before I went down. And when I looked back at the tree it seemed like it was still standing at first, but it had actually moved about 3feet away off its treestump and landed straight down into the ground in perfect balance. It took a few seconds before it finally tilted over and went down.
I have shot that gun many times later, but I never forget that first time and the huge impression it left on me..