Why Timothy Busfield Gifted Melissa Gilbert a Crossbow
Actors Melissa Gilbert and Timothy Busfield have given each other plenty of meaningful gifts over the 10 years they’ve been married. But one Christmas, Busfield gifted his lovely bride a crossbow. The Little House on the Prairie alum was touched by her husband’s thoughtful present to her.
Timothy Busfield bought Melissa Gilbert a crossbow to defend herself
In 2019, Gilbert and Busfield bought a cabin in the Catskill mountains. Initially, the home was intended to be a retreat for the couple to escape to when the hustle and bustle of New York City became overwhelming. But now, it’s their main place of residence. As Gilbert and Busfield started spending more and more time there, Busfeild got the idea that Gilbert needed a way to protect herself when she was at the cabin all alone. So for Christmas that year, the thirtysomething actor gifted the Little House alum a crossbow.
“Because we were vehemently against using a gun and my bad shoulder prevented me from shooting our bow and arrow, he got me a crossbow designed especially for ladies,” Gilbert wrote in her 2022 memoir, Back to the Prairie. “It was pink camo, and it made me look like Rambo’s bada** little sister.”
Melissa Gilbert has an excellent crossbow shot
As soon as Gilbert was gifted the weapon she felt protected.
“I don’t think anyone in their right mind would approach me if I pointed that weapon at them,” she wrote. “Despite the pink camo, it was huge, scary, and lethal-looking.”
She also appreciated that, unlike a gun, it didn’t have a high chance of resulting in a lethal accident.
“I liked that it was very intentional,” she wrote. “It took a minute to load the arrow, pull it back, and lock it into firing position. It meant I wasn’t going to shoot myself in the foot.”
Another reason Gilbert was sure she’d never shoot herself in the foot was that she had an excellent shot.
“We put up a target out back and I was able to hit the bulls-eye multiple times,” she wrote. Though noted she “couldn’t do it quickly.”
A crossbow in the pandemic
Gilbert was given the crossbow on the Christmas of 2019. Not too many months later, the Coronavirus pandemic came to the U.S. Like many of us, Gilbert and Busfield scoured for toilet paper, cleaning supplies, and canned goods as local grocery stores seemingly emptied overnight. And like many of us, the couple had the thought “What if we run out of food?” They stocked up on frozen goods when they could and bought an additional freezer to hold it all. But even large supplies run out eventually.
If worse came to worst, the couple decided they could always use the crossbow to hunt for food. There were wild turkeys around and Busfield knew how to prepare a delicious turkey dinner.
Thankfully, it never came to that. Gilbert instead prepared many comforting meals using whatever cans and frozen goods they had available. But they did find comfort in knowing that even without a freezer and pantry full of food, they could survive.
