Even now, decades later, I still struggle to say those words without feeling a knot in my chest.
We were poor. Not the kind of poverty people make documentaries about. There were no dramatic scenes of eviction or sleeping under bridges. It was a quieter kind of struggle. The kind that hides behind drawn curtains and polite smiles.
Our pickup truck rattled whenever it started and somehow survived years longer than it should have. Most of our clothes came from Goodwill. School lunch payments were often delayed with handwritten promises. The electric company knew our address by heart, and those red “FINAL NOTICE” stamps showed up so often they almost felt like part of the mail.
Dad worked as a carpenter and general contractor.
He repaired roofs after storms, rebuilt decks, patched drywall, installed cabinets, and took whatever jobs people offered. He left before sunrise and usually came home after dark, exhausted and covered in sawdust.
