My brother and I had no idea we were poor. We were able to play sports, attend field trips, eat otter pops and do nearly everything the other kids seemed to do. We were also blissfully unaware that our clothes, vhs tapes, furniture, and many of our possessions were from secondhand stores such as Goodwill or Value Village. We thought everyone only had seven television channels. We had no idea computers existed outside of school. And don't even get me started on cellular phones.
More than anything we were ignorant of the sacrifices made by our mom to give us better lives. She often lived off of four hours of sleep per night due to the fact that I wouldn't sleep through the night until first grade. She would donate plasma as often as she could so as to be able to buy milk, bread, shampoo, and the occasional pop-tart, which was a luxery indeed. She bought a house on her own and paid it off completely within a few years. I have never met a woman, or anyone for that matter, that could stretch a penny as far as my mother can.
Her many years of sacrifice has paid off. Today she is a successful manager at a well-respected bank. She is greatly loved by her family, friends, and coworkers. Very few people know of the sacrifices she had to make in order to get where she is today, to get my brother and I where we are today.
Because of our mother's example and teachings, my brother and I will both be graduating college within the next few years. From her we learned the value of a dollar, that a little kindness can go a long way, hard work is always worth it, and families are worth more than anything this world can offer us. We learned what it takes to be a good parent. In a world where possessions take precedence over family and learning how to become good people, I have never been more grateful for the example of a humble, selfless, and hard working woman in my life.
May we all strive to be as she is.
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