This is my story.

Growing up with one parent, an older sister and two younger siblings, it was hard to keep our lives going smoothly. We were living in Erath, Louisiana. My sister and I knew we were growing up poor. But the little ones were too young to know we were hardly making a living. We could barley afford a house, and food. Me and my sister would walk to the grocery store every day, with our little money we had (about 10 or 20 dollars) and buy food for only our little sister and little brother because we knew they needed to be fed more than we needed to be. While our mom was out trying to find a job, my sister and I's job were too watch the kids and clean the house. We did more than just that to keep our mom happy. She's come home at night and cry. I remember watching my mom cry because she knew this was a horrible lifestyle for her 4 kids but there was nothing she could do about it. Our fathers left, and she was alone with all 4 of us. Our dads never bothered to pay child support or even try to see us or help us out. My mom had to take care of 2 minors and 2 teenagers. She had to pay for school fees, food, bills..etc. Until one day, our rent was due and she was late. For the third time. Of course, we've gotten kicked out and we're living on the street. We had no form of transportation. My moms friends didn't care. Our family didn't care. We were all alone. We of course had to find a place for the two younger kids to stay, because they couldn't stay living out on the streets with no food. So my brother went live with his grandma. My little sister went live with her aunt. My older sister found a place to stay, her best friends house. And me, well, I had no one. I had no where to go. So me and my mom were left alone to find a place to stay. My mom met a guy, told him our story, and he let us into his life and his home. That's when I moved to Maurice and began going to North Vermilion Middle. My brother and sisters stayed where they were. And my mom and I took a risk and moved in with her new boyfriend. Then you can only imagine, things went downhill and we were left on the street again. Once again, we were poor with no money. Last Christmas, my mom didn't have any money for presents. So we didn't get any from her. My brother and sisters got presents from their new families. I got a pair of socks. I wasn't complaining though. It's better than nothing at all. My mom and I have spent the past 2 years doing nothing but moving from house to house, trying to find a way to live without living in a homeless shelter or a Woman's Home. My mom had a friends that welcomed us into their home and let us stay until we found a new home to live in. But, last weekend, we moved out because we caught them stealing our things. So right now, we're in Erath. Buying a new house. A nice house. We have money. We have money. My mom has her kids back. My sister attends the University Of Lafayette. I'm moving back to my home town. My sister is 10 years old, on her last year of elementary school. My brother is 7 years old, going on 1st grade. I'm in my first year of high school. It's crazy how time flies. My family kept pushing until we could make our lives right. We have the worst luck, trust me. But we put that aside and work hard to make a living. I'm glad I never took advantage of this or put my mom through hell. Even though we're living in it. The moral is to never take what you have for granted. If you think about giving up on something, keep pushing because in the end, something great will happen and you'll never regret it.