Grandpa Verb Sharp

My Grandpa Verb was one of a kind. I guess we ALL think that about our Grandpas. See his crippled hands. He would sit at his typewriter for hours and peck away one finger at a time to write a letter to the Editor of the local newspaper. Boy did Grandpa have opinions. He was born in 1901 in Oklahoma when Oklahoma was still Indian Territory. His father was Carroll Sharp but everyone called him FUZZY because he clipped his whiskers with scissors instead of shaving. His mother was Vernie Poole. I started my life living with them in a place called Yettem. It was a bunch of little houses clustered together and nestled right up against the foothills of the Sierra Nevadas. Not long before they settled this area, outlaws, train robbers and such had traversed the area hiding in the hills. One famous pair of outlaws, Sontag and Evans stayed in that area often and Sontag was shot to death nearby. Grandpa showed me the place several times. It was called Stone Corral. They came to California in search of opportunity. Oklahoma had failed them. They were Farmers and the dirt on their farm had dried up and was blowing away in the wind. It was the worst of times and they went WEST. Note the television in the background. It was my FIRST television. We did not have one at our home. I spent many Saturday nights with Grandpa and Grandma. We would watch PONDEROSA and Wonderful World of Disney. Grandpa loved the Beverly Hillbillies, he hated Perry Como. Grandma watched whatever HE wanted to watch. They both dipped snuff and kept their snuff cans nearby to spit into. Grandma kept 7-UP in her refrigerator and if you were spending the night with them, you got a whole soda pop. I did not have to take a bath. I had to sit up on the countertop and wash my feet good and then slept with Grandma and listened to her stories until I woke up to the smell of bacon frying and biscuits in the oven.
Posted by: Sheena Sharp