We all get a little touchy about our guns, and for good reason. I mean, we’re constantly dealing with people who want to forcibly disarm us because of the actions of criminals, then we get laws that would allow the government to take our guns if we make someone a bit too uncomfortable. I mean, it’s not difficult to see why we might get a little touchy about it.

But, at the heart of us, we can all agree there are situations where we may not be the best choice to hold onto our guns anymore.

For family members, there can be questions about when Grandpa probably shouldn’t have guns anymore. For some, that should be about the time they retire. For others, it’s when he no longer has his wits.

Yet there’s a new thing that may help clarify things.

It’s already difficult to tell an aging loved one they should give up the keys to their car. So talking about what they should do with their firearms, could be even more sensitive. That’s why researchers in Colorado have developed the Firearm Life Plan.

FirearmLifePlan.org is a free, anonymous resource created by researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, to give families and gun owners a way to create a plan for the future.

“It’s something that we developed for firearm owners and their families to help think through what they would want to happen in the future, either if they develop impairments that make them less safe at handling firearms, or ultimately at their death,” said Dr. Emmy Betz, professor at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and Director of the Firearm Injury Prevention Initiative.

The Firearm Life Plan was created after researchers spent over a year with focus groups, and interviewed over 100 firearm owners and families.

“What we heard from people was there are lots of resources for other kinds of planning,” said Dr. Betz. “Driving, advanced care planning for medical needs, estate planning, and financial documents. But there wasn’t anything specifically for how to think about decisions related to firearms.”

In other words, it gives gun owners say in how to deal with such a situation, not your kids who may or may not want to respect your wishes.

That’s not a bad thing. Plus, they went to gun owners in the first place.

Look, I don’t plan to give up my guns in this life unless I end up with something like Alzheimer’s or something similar. At that point, I won’t trust myself with guns, so having something like this in place isn’t a bad thing. Especially since I’ve seen it pop up in my family.

Knowing that the problem could be handled well ahead of time so my kids don’t have to struggle with that decision sounds pretty good.

However, I have concerns.

Frankly, I’m going to be more than a little paranoid about anything that deals with the potentiality of my guns being taken from me.

This looks like a case of “only time will tell.” It might be a good thing, or it might be a complete trainwreck for gun owners. We’ll have to see.