I taught my step-mother to read, write

Dear Pastor,

I am 16 and want to become a nurse. I am living with my father and his girlfriend. I call her my step-mother but she is only 23 so she can pass as my sister.

When I was three months old, my mother left me with my father and never reurned. My father treated me well. He got another lady but they did not get along.

She wasn't nice. My father is a hard worker. My aunt helps to take care of me. My father has never had another child. This young woman living with him loves him. We talk about everything.

She told me her relatives say that she is living with an old man. She said her previous boyfriends were young and did not treat her well. When I come home from school, I teach her a lot and she loves me for that. She could not write very well. Now she is writing and spelling and sometimes my father is jealous when he hears us. This house belongs to my father. He told me that the house would be mine. Anything I get I would share it with his girlfriend because she is nice. When I ask my father if he is going to marry her, he says he has not made up his mind. He said 'woman mind change like green lizard'.

F.S.

Dear F.S.,

I would like to encourage you to keep focused. I am glad that you get along with your father and his lady.

This young woman appreciates your father and loves him. She is an intelligent young woman. She knows that your father loves you and it would be unwise for her to treat you unkindly.

I am happy that you can assist her by teaching her. I am happy that you are comfortable at home. I want you to excel in everything that you do.

Pastor