I was around 8 years old, my brother 12 and my sister 5. My mom had been a widow for 3 years. When she first invited her co worker Jack to meet us all. He came over after dinner one evening. I look back and can imagine her being nervous. We were given our orders to be nice and to mind our manners when we would meet her friend. Jack arrived it was about 6:30 in November. It was cold and dark outside because i remember my sister and I crawling back behind the couch so we could sort of hide b ehind the curtians infront of our two front room windows. So we could peek to get a good look at him before he came inside. When he knocked at our front door Mom answered it and he came in.. by then we had jumped back over the top of the couch and were sitting on it dressed in our PJ because 7:30 was bedtime. Mom brought him into the livingroom to introduce him to all of us. We were polite and said hello but giggle out of control.
Jack on the other hand knew just how to handle 2 little girls and a Boy who had for 3 years been the man of the house. He had brought with him a quart of chocolate ice cream hand packed from a local dairy Isleys.. ( who as a matter of fact was the company that invented the Konldike bar a few years later).. that broke the ice and we all went to the table and mom dished up the ice cream. He also had brought us each a comic book. And brought my brother 3 packs of baseball cards and a comic book too.
From that day on Jack was our friend. Well a few months passed and it was January and Jack and my Mom were going on a real date. The were going to drive over to the next biggest town and go to a fancy dance with a band. I remember my mom buying a new dress doing something like that was very unusual.. as we didnt have alot of money and a fancy dress was really something. I can still see her in that dress. It had a full skirt, just below her knees and the skirt was made of chiffon.. a champagne color kind of a very light pink but also a c ream color.
I remember thinking she looked just like Cinderella... and Jack was dressed in a black suit with a black necktie and he had flowers he pinned on to her dress. I was so excited.
The next time Jack came over he brought us ice cream again and would sit down at the table with us. And my sister and I by then had fallen in love with him.. and my brother thought he was an ok guy. We liked him. and would talk about him when he was not there.
While we were sitting there spooning strawberry ice cream into our mouths my sister Cathy kept trying to get into the conversation but no one was paying any attention to her we were all jibber jabbing away. Then she screamed... EVERYONE PLEASE BE QUITE!!!!! I WANT TO TALK.
There she sat with her davey crockette t shirt and her jammie bottoms. and she stood up on her chair. She looked at all of us then she looked at Jack and said.
I want to know just when are you going to marry my mommy. !!!! Everyone was still for a moment and then he said. Well sweetheart I think it will be on August 19.
Jack became our dad. IN all ways possible he loved us so much that he even forgot that we were not his biological children. How do I know that......because when my first child was born and I was standing at the glass with my mom and Jack my Dad.. he looked at the baby with tears in his eyes and said.. Well you look at that I think she has my chin...... Never giving a thought that she could not h ave had his chin.
But more of Jack was in us than any blood could transfer.. Jack lived in each one of us kids and in his grandkids too. Jack put within each of us understanding, wisdom, kindness, unconditional love, the love of music, and art, how to be a good person, and how to live a successful life. Jack was my Dad and I miss him so much now that he has been gone for about 8 years. RIP Jack I **** love you
Tags: Kids Parents Memories
