Why Are We Living Dirt Poor?

There is no one greater or more important to me than my mom. She has taught me so many of the qualities that I possess. She has also given me many new ways to look at life. There is so much to say about her, mostly good qualities of course. She has been through so many hardships. I only know of a few because she usually does not tell us about what is going on. This way my brothers and I will not worry. Each of these many hardships has not only made her stronger, but also our family. The beginning of our journey started in first grade when my parents got divorced. It was obviously a pretty hard time for us because of all the stress it put on my mom. Just like any other divorce there was a custody battle, but really it was not much of a battle considering my dad really was not into the idea of having full custody. He was interested in the money. My mom on the other hand was the complete opposite. She gave up all the expenses that my dad should have paid just to guarantee her full custody. She gave up everything to make sure my brothers and I got to stay with her. That is something that I will never forget. Since then, we have been struggling financially and living paycheck-to-paycheck. Unfortunately, her degree in social services does not offer many job opportunities. Even though it has been tough living with little funds, I would not change a thing because I know that our family would not be as strong if

Dr. Martian Luther King Jr. once said, “And one day we must ask that question, ‘Why are there forty million poor people in America?’ and when you begin to ask that question, you are raising questions about the economic system, and a broader system of wealth. When you ask that question, you begin to question the capitalist economy.” In other words that the capitalist economy is the reason why there are so many poor people, and the people who are struggling to get by not knowing if they are going to have a home next month or not. Since we have this class system it puts people in that state of mind where they become a slave just to work as hard, and never make it to where they want to be in life. Furthermore

Similarly, my Mother advised a great deal in my choice to continue with my education. Back in 1988, when I was seven years old, my mother graduated college with a Bachelor’s degree in Special Education. Watching her work tirelessly while trying to raise me, work full time and attempting full-time credit hours, instilled in me the desire and drive to achieve my goals. She has been my role model as a non-traditional student. She helped me achieve a workable school/work/life balance. She has been my constant cheerleader since my decision to return to college and pursue an undergraduate degree.

There have been a vast number of lives that have touched mine. Many different people have shared a piece of their soul in my formation. However, it is my mother who is the most important and most influential person in my life. My mother raised me by herself since the day I was born. My father was abusive and she left to make a better life for the both of us. She has worked as many as four jobs at one time. My mother wants to make sure my brothers and I have a better life than she did. It hasn’t always been easy for her, taking care of us on her own, trying to pay bills and making sure we had everything we needed. My mom has always had us involved in sports at a very young age. We always were doing something or involved in something

Being raised just by my Mom for a while had a major effect on the person I came to be today. When you think about a Mom, you tend to think loving and caring. With my mom raising me, she taught me just that. Growing up she taught me the values of being respectable to my elders, how to have proper manners, how to treat a girl correctly, etc… Most people would think that because of this, their son may come out to be “girly”. Since a father figure is not present. Although, I knew growing up that I had to act as the “man” of the house. So when my

A mother who made many sacrifices and went days without eating to make sure that I did. A mother who taught me the significance of education, religion, and morals and values. One who told me to respect others, to open the door for his elders, to have manners, to let ladies go first, to treat others the way he’d like to be treated, and best of all to help and give to others less fortunate than him. She has provided me with the best possible education that a waitress with two kids can. This education has brought me many great teachers who have genuinely cared about me and my future. Teachers who have pushed me to be better academically and in my own life. I have also had friends who have motivated and competed with me to bring out the best in each

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

not have to grow up in the same conditions as she was living in such a poor country. Every mother wants better for their children than they received as a child. My mom has only ever asked for one thing in return for us, her children to further our education, and go into a career that we passionate about. Even though, she became a citizen, she did not have a proper education so she could not go into a career she is passionate about. My mom was not able to pick the career she would end up in, she did whatever she could to make ends meet, and provide for her children. This meant doing jobs no one enjoys, but she also found a job that she enjoys, it may not be the best out there. She definitely made the best out of what she could. Slowly she started enjoying one of her jobs more, that job being Homecare, which she has now worked for twenty plus years. Seeing her in her scrubs everyday working more than twelve hour shifts each day inspired me, along with my current hospital visits as a child to become a nurse. For me to accomplish the goal of becoming a nurse would make my mother proud in a way that I can not wait to

Growing up I learned through my mother's strength to be dedicated to making a change in my life. To work hard for what is right no matter what obstacles I had to fight through. Although I treasure my mother's efforts, I wish my father would have been there to guide me through life's lessons; I wish he would be here today to be proud of everything I have acquired.

I have always looked up to her. Even though we have face hardships, financially, or emotionally, she always make sure that we do not stop. She had advocated that, we have to keep, figuratively, moving, or else we, as people, would never amount to anything. Further, I had inherited a vast amount of characteristics thanks to my mother. Some might be a little excessive. Like, how sometimes, I just have the dire, and intense compulsion to clean. That might not be bad, but, it sure is tiresome. On the others hand, I am grateful that I had acquired characteristics, such as being meticulous, and caring. This is all because I had an amazing person that I could look up to as a child. Withal, my mom was the one who had gotten my interested in a career in law. She had once worked as a sheriff, and a correction officer, and she had always seemed to enjoy her job. As a child, it seemed like one of the most interesting things to be, and eventually, I knew that I had wanted to be a person who worked in

I am so fortunate to have a mom like mine. Her name is Carol, she is a mom of four but she makes me feel special. Whenever I'm sad, mad or whatever she's always there to talk to for a advice, not just for me, but for anyone. She always taught me to be kind and open mined and happy. I've learned so much from her. She is the main reason I am who I am today, and allows me to be me and do what I dream to do, and supports me in whatever I do, and she always has my back and my best interest in mind. I inspire to be like her someday. I am So fortunate to have her as my mom

Since my preschool years, my parents encouraged me to excel academically. Before elementary school, my parents bought me a plethora of math work books, which I would spend hours on, learning to add and subtract large numbers. They took me to the library a countless number of times. There, I would grab the maximum number of books that my little arms could hold and read them all. My parents made sure that I was given the opportunities that eluded them during their childhood. My dad lived in Puerto Rico as a child. His family lived on a small income, eating mayonnaise sandwiches for lunch . My mom was raised up in a divorced home, where she had to cook, clean, and care for her entire family. After high school, she worked during the day and went to college at night. Their example and determination to give my siblings and I opportunities in life, has been a driving force for my future success.

As a kid my mother had a hard time. Her mom was sick so she couldn’t work and that made it really hard on her family. In school she was told that she didn’t try hard enough and that she would never make it to college because of lack of effort. When she got home from her principal telling her that she decided that she would be an all a student by the end of the year. Her mother helped her achieve this goal by coming up with new ways for her to study. To be able to buy clothes and a lot of

Today I had the opportunity to experience and go through what others who live in poverty have to go through. I learned so much and I also learned the amount of money that a house of four or even what a house of three have to pay for and how each dollar they earn goes to bills, medicine, food, and mortgage. To make it a month or even to make it a week if you are on a fixed salary or only one person works in your family. The amount of money that someone earns has to go towards helping you plan and pay for anything that might help you and your family survive. During the simulation we had to go along make sure we went with the schedule and made sure the kids were off to school if they were to go there if they didn’t go the police would come and

From a young age my mother has pushed me to excel academically. Over the years she has provided me with the tools necessary to shape my goals. She has been my greatest aid and more importantly, my biggest inspiration. My mother made the decision to leave her family, friends, and career behind in order to give me a brighter future. She is a single mother and has raised me to be strong since I was five years old.