I have mentioned the Summer From Hell a few times. Only a select few people know what I referring to. So, I thought that I would share with the rest of you. Who knows, maybe it might help someone. I'll start at the VERY beginning. Here goes....
My parents were married on July 22, 1972. I was born on August 5, 1973. My father was a career Marine. This means that he was in the Corps for 20 years. We retired to Jefferson City in May 1990. My dad found it very difficult over the years to make it as a civilian. He and my mother would fight a lot. There were a few times when the "D" word was thrown around. But, we never thought anything about it. Growing up, I thought that I had the perfect family. My parents loved each other and we were very family oriented. Lots of my friends were jealous. For years, I thought that every WAS perfect. Then came the Summer From Hell. In 2004, my brother decided that he wanted to transfer from Lincoln University to Missouri University in Columbia. They have one of the best Journalism schools in the state. My dad didn't think that he should go, but mom won that one. Well, from then on, things went from bad to worse. In 2003, I had moved out to live in my own apartment with my son. The arrangement was that mom and dad would help with rent and other expenses. Otherwise, there was no way that I could make it with my paycheck. Once Chris left for MU, I was forgotten. Mom started spending more time at work. Dad started getting weirder. They forgot our arrangement. So, I just started cutting down on expenses. I quit taking all of my medications, that saved me at least $50 a month. I quit opening my mail. I quit cleaning my house. I didn't have much money to buy food. So, I would make sure that Michael was taken care of, and forgot about myself. By April 2004, things started to get REALLY bad. Mom made a new "friend" at work. She was able to tell him all of her personal problems and he would listen to her. He started going to our church. Then the latter part of April rolled around. Dad called me and asked if I knew where my mom was. Since I am not her keeper, I wasn't sure. He said that she was probably over at her "boyfriend's" house and he was going over there. Ok, I start freaking! I tried mom's cell..voicemail...tried Sam's phone....machine. Short of throwing my kid in the car and running to Sam's house to warn my mom, there was nothing that I could do. So, I did the next best thing. I called Renee and told her to pray a prayer of protection for my mother. Mom finally called me and informed me that her car was gone. Dad had come by while she and Sam were "watching" The Firm (yet another reason for me to dislike Tom Cruise), and moved the car up the road. They found it and she came home. Sam followed in his car. She then proceeded to start taking all of her clothes out of the apartment. Sam was at my apartment. We were able to watch the whole thing. So, mom started staying with my grandparents, who lived in the next building over. The next day, my dad came over to my apartment crying. He informed me that he and mom were filing for divorce. I was completely broken. I knew that my parents had been having problems, but divorce? Not my parents. I was the spoiled brat with the perfect family. This couldn't happen! Well, I'm sure that some of you have heard about messy divorces, by this one was horrendous. My dad stated to go completely mental on us. He started making up stories about Sam and mom. He would constantly call me at work and home, keep coming over to my apartment with new stories. Needless to say, I started therapy and took a few days off of work. I also talked to my pastor, Brother Skiles. I was just so hurt and confused. I had been lied to by the people I trusted the most. I fell into a deeper depression. When Michael's birthday came in May, I forgot to even plan a party. Mom and I weren't talking to each other. I was the angriest with her. I wasn't able to see at that time, that she was happier than she had been for a long time. She had found a great Christian man who was just a fabulous person. Dad ended up moving to Independence. In December 2004, mom and Sam were married. He is the best step-father that anyone could ask for.
Things are a lot better now. I am still the oldest sibling. I gained 3 step-brothers (TIM, Sammy, and Eric) and one step-sister (Charli). They are all great. It was a hard transition but with my friends and God, I made it through. I still have "trust" issues, but in time, that will just work itself out. I just try not to dwell on all of it. It still hurts too much.
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