Pastor's
Soul Story
by Tasneem Tewagbolan
Andrew
Stephens
To some he is his mother’s child.
Notice how he touches his top lip with his forefingers when he gets deep.
Deep in writing. Deep in analysis. Deep in thought.
Raised on sonnets and Shakespeare, he is a scholar’s son.
Just as quick in the classroom as he is on his feet, he is the first-born of Ethel Ree Morgan Stephens, for sure.
Others watch his spine-straight, high-shoulder gait and see Andrew Sr., his father.
He is “Drew,” the son of a second-generation brick mason and baseball player for the Negro Leagues.
He carries the agility of an athlete and the ambition of men who use their bodies, and brains, for speed and sustenance.
Oh yes, he is his father’s child, for sure.
And, yet, he is more; dimensions drape him like Jacob’s colorful coat.