Rough draft

One of the more annoying phrases in the English language is "I can't do anything about this". One of the worst feelings is feelings powerless over a situation and like you don't have any control. One of these situations I face everyday is money, a problem that all of us Americans face. Money can open up more or even less opportunities for a person. Money determines how important you are to a society, how much treatment you get and even what your future holds. Money can be a blessing for some, but a downfall for others, particularly a downfall for lower middle class families.

When I was about 15 years old, I realized how important it is in the economy to work hard and to keep saving capital. My parents owned a very nice house and we always had food in the fridge; little necessities that everyone should have. I usually also had things that I asked for, such as a new jacket or a new book, sometimes a new phone if I was lucky. My parents could afford these little things for me as well as all of our bills. I never knew the value of a dollar or my parents hard work to give me these things.

Within a few months, as our economy was spiraling downwards, my parents lost both of their jobs. Soon the opportunity to work disappeared as well. My mom became disabled and my dad obtained a criminal record. My parents are both older as well, and employers want young people to work for them, even though my parents each had years of experience and training. Without a job, a family can't pay bills. Without money, families can't afford homes. In 2009 my family became a statistic and lost our home. We were not only jobless, but we were homeless. We lost all of our possessions as well as our sense of security.

The bank gave us about 6 months to find a place to live. Little did we know that finding a place to live was almost as impossible as finding a job. You need money to get a place to live but without a job it's impossible. It's a dangerous cycle. Luckily, my parents were able to sell the house and saved the money they got from selling it. My parents went to live in York, Maine with my aunt for free in her farmhouse while I stayed in Malden to live with my uncle for free to finish out my sophomore year of high school.

My mom's mind was blown by the foreclosure as well as not being able to live with the family she wanted. She lost control of herself and by the winter of 2011, my mom drained the family's money on booze and pills. It was a painful thing to witness but the most painful part was having to witness my mom pawn her wedding ring just to pay for her prescription's.

Medical emergencies became the norm, and paying for them in full came along with it. We couldn't afford any type of insurance, so when it came time to get my wisdom teeth removed, my parents had to pay for it in full, plunging us into more and more debt.

Eventually I had to move to York, ME to live with my aunt so I could attend school. My aunt was just like my parents; she had problems paying her bills because she couldn't find a job either. Her house was about to go under as well. My parents eventually moved out of my aunt's house to move back to Massachusetts, leaving me two states away.

We eventually ran out of options for ourselves. We got turned down for welfare, housing, food stamps, apartments and jobs. We either had a few dollars more in our bank accounts or had few less dollars to have any of these. About a month later, my mom stopped drinking, which meant our family would end up having a little more money to save. The government also realized that my mom was very sick and couldn't legally work. She finally started to make an income, about $900 a month in social security. Not enough for a two bedroom or even a one bedroom apartment in Malden, but enough to buy her wedding ring back. It was a positive start and things began to look up from there.

A month later, someone saw through my dad's criminal record; he got employed as a janitor at the YMCA. Even though my dad had a college degree, he took any job he could get. He wasn't going to make money from being picky. Money started coming in, but mom's habit kicked back in. Whenever my parents got close to having enough money to get their own apartment and out of the shelter, something came up: mom drank, or mom needed treatment, or my dad needed medication. Dad couldn't afford health care and he made too much money for free health care. His prescriptions ran up about $300 a month for his diabetes.

Somehow, things seemed to go our way and an apartment in our price range opened up. We were quick to grab and it and succeeded. We were no longer homeless or even struggling with finances. Things were looking up for us for the first time in a very long period. As good as things seemed and as good as things are going, they will never be perfect. My dad lost his job a few weeks ago and the family had to start cutting finances and spending ever since. We're still able to afford our rent and our electric bill; that's all that matters to us, having a place to live.

Even though my mom gets money and we have a house, we still struggle with money. I've been looking for a job ever since my dad lost his. It's become harder to pay for some of the necessities in life like food, but as long as we have a roof over our head we'll be just fine. I had a really hard time paying for community college as well as my own insurance. Money makes the world go round, but understanding the value of a dollar can make all the difference.