Hardships Research Paper

One weekend, we had decided to clean out the house to surprise my mother. My father found papers stashed away that revealed theft charges; my mother had stolen medication when she substituted for the nurse in my elementary school. I remember my dad scouring the house for more evidence, even finding a stash of pill bottles under their mattress. She had another court date coming up that he learned about, just a few weeks before a family trip to Disney. Shortly after that hearing, my family took our last vacation as a whole, knowing that a key member would be lost to us the Monday after our return; she was going into work-release for two months. Before the end of those sixty days, my father learned that my mother had been unfaithful. Their marriage ended, and at eleven and nine, my sister and I said what we didn't realize would be goodbye to our mother for a great while. Her drug abuse continued, and months of time would pass between visits. We saw that sweet, ideal mother devolve into an addict. This loss has shaped me greatly, and it has taught me integrity, strength of character, and great love for others; without these things, my mother cost herself her family and

Nevertheless, it was challenging for a single mother to raise three kids without financial and emotional support. At that time my mother was a housekeeper, and she and my father divorced when I was six-years old. She is a tenacious women. Moreover, she is supportive, hardworking and possesses a magnificent sense of humor. While I was in school, my mother worked long hours and by the time I arrived home she barely had energy to cook dinner, or check out my academic progress. However, even when she was mentally and physically exhausted, she always cooked for me and my

My mother was a widow by the time she was in her mid-thirties with four children under the age of 16. It would have been easy to accept handouts and pity, but I witnessed her rise from tragedy, more determined than ever to provide every necessity that her children needed and wanted. As appreciative as I was when I was younger, I look back in total awe of her. Even though she worked 60-plus hours a week to make ends meet, she still told us that

I grew up watching my mother strive to give me a better life and become a better person. Amongst great difficulty, she decided to finish school and attend university. Her hard work and determination have marked and defined my life. Every day she had to work, then go to university and later take care of me. She excelled in every aspect of her life, teaching me that the impossible is overcome through hard work and

My mom did everything in her power to make ends meet. After my brother graduated, my mother moved 500 miles away to Connecticut. I grew up in West Virginia, this resulted in me not wanting to move. I moved in with my father my freshman year. My father was constantly distracted from drugs and alcohol. At this time, I was half way through high school. I realized that I could not live with him anylonger. I spent about a year living with friends. My grandmother, who I was not particularly close with, so graciously allowed me to live with. In order to do this, I was requirered to learn how to support myself financially. Today, I assist my grandmother in paying utilities as well as paying for all neccessitites for myself. My grandmother never had a license or a vehicle. I provide her with transportation too. She does not support me financially, but she does provide me with a roof over my head. In June, I will be moving out on my own. I will continue to live each day with optimism. I will continue to endavor through the difficult times, and will stop at nothing to reach

Especially because I don't want you to end up like me.” The conversation is still fresh in my memory and tears form in the corner of my eyes when I think about it. My mother was aware that her life was no walk in the park and I think that's what hurt me the most. I would never want my children to see me in such a state that I've seen my mother in. At the same time I would want her to see that hard work truly pays off. A miracle is just another word for the result of hard work. Some people are born with silver spoons in their mouth and I've seen how meaningless their lives turn out to be. My mother proved to me that your struggles make you stronger and define who you are. Struggling is almost impossible to avoid and rather than sulking about it, I'd rather use it to make me a stronger person, like my mom

Throughout the seventeen years that I’ve been alive I have witnessed all the sacrifices my parents have gone through ensuring I have a better future than they did. I come from immigrant parents that weren’t fortunate enough to continue studying. I myself was brought into the country when I was two years old so I could build a different path than the one my parents had to take due to financial reasons. Short after, my sister was born my mom got remarkably ill with Diabetes. I would watch in terror as my mother would lay in bed barely able to move. I held her hand, wiped her forehead, with a cool wet towel, and longed she would get all better. Being the oldest in the

From the time I was born until the age of twelve, my family struggled with the basic necessities of life. My father worked endless hours in a factory, and yet somehow came home with a smile on his face. As a young kid, I never knew we were struggling. The thought had never occurred to me. As I got older I started to realize that my single father was working his life away to care and provide for his two little girls. He completely put aside his well-being because as long as his girls were cared for, nothing else mattered. Life was never easy, but as a young adult today, I have come to accept that my background has been a prerequisite for greatness, for it is our backgrounds that define who we are. The way we are raised, the way we are taught to believe, and the way we are taught to act, make us who we are today.

Personal Statement Fourteen and homeless is where I found myself four years ago. My mother (a hard working single parent of two.) set sights for a better living situation in the big apple. Unfortunately with one suitcase, no money and two young children the only choice for my mother was to seek refuge in a homeless shelter. Contrary to popular belief, that growing up homeless could potentially harm a child, it has had a positive impact on my life while being a reminder of the humble beginnings I came from. Growing up homeless assisted in building my character, a blood thirsty determination to achieve, and self awareness.

During this time my mom dealt with unemployment for almost two months. She now has a good baby-sitting job and I’m extremely proud to say my mom has done everything in her power to raise my brother and I. She has become a more independent driven woman, whose growth has shown me that the struggles that life brings are actually opportunities to be better. I face my challenges with confidence because I know I can only learn from them and they will shape the person that I want to become. I no longer face obstacles but

Watching my mother live from pay check to pay check when I was young was difficult. It was always hard for my mom to keep up with other parents but, she still somehow managed to get me everything I wanted, and more. Even though I was too young to understand, I could feel the stress, and the struggles my mom faced every day. She was only 20 years old when I was born and, because of that she had no choice but to grow up fast. At such a young age, I saw the effects of being a single parent, and the ways it changed my mom. She not only had to be a young mother but, she had to find a way to replace the void of a father, or a father figure in my life. My mom was strong, independent and courageous. Growing up watching her live her dreams under all the circumstances she faced, made me want to strive for a better life for myself. Seeing how hard is was to live and to have enough

Growing up as a child the youngest of five siblings raised by a single mother from the south side of Chicago, Illinois I experienced many obstacles that I had to overcome daily as a child at a very early age. Chicago has one of the highest murder rates in the United States. The environment I grew up in was very detrimental filled with drugs and violence on every corner. My neighbors were drug dealers and drug addicts who were constantly fighting all the time. My mother worked two jobs full time seven days a week to maintain the household and financial responsibilities. At times I would sell chips, candy and juice in front of stores to make money so that I could help my mother pay the bills and I’d often have to take care of my sick grandmother

It took me eighteen years to spend some quality time with my mother and discover what an incredible journey she has had with my brothers and me. She is the kind of person who has always been very involved with all parts of our daily lives. In fact, she was the kind of mother who always had time for her three sons, worked full-time and had time to devote to community projects too. Her energy and enthusiasm for all of these things seemed endless and she always tried to teach the three of us to see the value in the idea of giving back to the community. I was always glad that she was present at my games and supported me through school, but it took me over a decade to learn what motivated her to be so

In life one has to start at the bottom and rise up to the top. There are going to be struggles along the way, but you will learn from those struggles. It won’t be easy and it will never become any easier, but that doesn’t mean you should give up. My mom and dad both grew up with a lot of restrictions of what they could do in life. Culture tyranny is a big part of why they couldn’t be as free as I am today. My mother grew up in poverty with no mother or father to give her the love she deserve. But she wasn’t alone, her grandparents were there at her side for a while until one of my grandparents slowly passed away from an unknown illness. My mother was deeply hurt, she felt alone, abandon and she felt lost in this world. Her uncles and aunts where the only ones that could take care of her, but it wasn’t the same as having the love a mother and father gives. I’m very happy that I was able to be part of this amazing family that I have now. Even if there have been some struggles and conflicts along the way. My parents have influenced me, from the bottom of my heart I love them. I was born in a small country name Guatemala on February 26, 1998. I was given birth at home which I thought was funny because throughout my life I have never heard of people being born in their houses except for me and my sister. When I grew older I met new people and learned that I wasn’t the only one born in a weird situation such as I had a friend born in a toilet and another born in a car. My parents

Growing up in a low-income family can be tough, especially with the type of culture we grew up in. Both of my parents were raised strict and with no little expectations. My dad is the fifth child out of ten children. His father was really strict and if none of the children wanted to attend school, they had to work. My dad is the only child that completed primary school. Afterwards, he had to work since he did not have any support system to continue school. In addition, my mother’s childhood was more complicated than my father. She has two older half-brothers from her mother’s side and four half-siblings from her father’s side. She only has one sister from the same parents. Her dad died when she was about four years old. At the age of seven, she had to work and cook.