Life after Pa Pa Vernon

Its Raining again today in Greer ,and I am blogging about how much Vernon ,My Father has meant to me. Word can not really express them truly. He came into our live 35 years ago ,a quiet ,respectful, humble and least of all exrtremley smart! As you have most likley figured out ,he was my Step Father . The title is only a title ,because he was everthing that my two sister and I, could have asked for. My Mom Elaine married him when I was 13 ,Vicky was 14 and Jackie was 12. Wow!When I see that on this page I think......He should have run and got on the slow boat to China we all hear so much about! I would love to tell you that it was all a bowl of cherries , not true ! He was for sure baptized by fire ! We tried hard to not like him....impossible he was exactly what our Family needed, and God does know best! It was not very long after Elaine and Vernon got married my Father ,Jack Wheeler Sanders (J.W.) passsed away, and that made me want to fight harder to dislike him,still no luck God would not allow it. There is one turning point in my life that, I can recall so vividly ,when I was outside under the Carport ,sitting on Vernon's Snapper lawn mower ,with a wet head in the Winter time I was trying to boycott him ,being in charge, while Nana lane was away, for the evening. Vernon very softly opened the door and said these few words to me" Kathy I am not trying to take your Fathers place, and I never will ,You need to come in, before you get sick,and he very softly closed the door. Man, was I ever stunned ,how could I get mad at that. He was truly a gift from God to my family,and we were blessed with one more special gift on June 20 1976 ,My lil "Vernon "Tice" Stephens"Te Ti"my baby brother, who is now 33 years old ,not much of a baby anymore. I credit Tice's birth with the glue that brought us all together as a family unit. Life was good