explaining what rich means to me in Second 1st

For You:

I lived in a very small town. So tiny, I’d say 6x6 blocks. We lived smack dab in the middle till I was 8. We lived on a corner lot that my grandmother owned, in a duplex. The front half was a 3 bedroom 1 bath with a small side yard. The back was a 1 bedroom, an old man lived there.One side of this yard was walled in by the brick of our town fire house, on the other side of it was the local game rental place and at the other end of the block was a small convenience store. She also owned the house behind that (where a family of 3 lived, the child being our babysitter for a time who molested me) and one up the street where my uncle lived with his wife and a much older cousin.

This town was so small (and spread out) that at 5 my parents let me walk to school in the company of another 5 yr old and no adults, 3 blocks and crossing the main road through town. I remember the whole town showing up to a spaghetti dinner held at the high school for a local kid with cancer. Though I can’t remember his name I do remember it was the son of the guy who owned the grocery/party store.

I know (now that I’m older) that we were in this house because there was a lot of rent forgiveness.

My grandmother lived in her family home, a huge farm about 15 mins outside of town on 150 acres (.6 square kilometers) and when she passed we moved out there. Six bedrooms one bathroom, haunted and holding the stigma of being a farm. We had chickens for awhile but never really kept animals. My dad rented out the fields and the barn but in the end lost it all to credit card debt and not paying taxes. Yup.... HUGE house, TONS of land and he couldn’t keep it.

We were poor. When I was 12 I babysat for a neighbor (The Frys) The summer was wonderful I worked 3 days a week. I would show up while she was eating breakfast and read her to bed at night. I brought home a $99 dollar check each week. I kept $10. I used the rest to pay whatever bill needed to be paid. I mean how do you expect a child to function without lights, without food.... also, how can you expect a child to provide it for you. I have little to no respect for my father because of this really and the fact that when the molesting did happen he made every argument he could to keep quiet and won against my mother. He used fear mostly as I have learned many years later. I do not and will not forgive him but I don’t think about it everyday either.

My idea of rich isn’t buying an MK purse or a Rolex watch.... it’s not having to worry when something happens. Pipe bursts, call the plumber, NOW not turn the water off and handle it for a week/month… till you get the funds up. Bill comes in, just turn it right back around paid. Pay rent/mortgage early, why not the money is already there. Hell, make a second payment we will be fine.

We are getting there. I think. I mean in the morning I’ll have the mortgage together and 200 left in the bank. I mean that’s better than last month. It feels better than when we were staying with my brother anyways. It’s ours.

Last updated January 26, 2017