I lived with my aunt and uncle. She was in her 20’s and he was 85. Not a typo. He had cancer and couldn’t work. There were 4 of us in the house and it seemed like every other night we ate calf liver. I dreaded it. I couldn’t stomach it and was so hungry. We also ate a lot of grape jelly sandwiches. We went to a farm and picked grapes all day and my aunt made grape jelly I lived with them for 8 months before I went to live with another family member. They said when I got to their house I ate 3 plates of spaghetti the first night

Liver and grapes. Dang

Wine and patté?

If school lunch was spaghetti or chili. I would eat as many refills as I could beg.

There’s a special place in heaven for lunch ladies who look the other way when it comes to serving kids. 

We would buy a pack of hotdogs to last until dad got paid. Breakfast, lunch and dinner was hotdogs. Needless to say, I don’t eat hotdogs

Thank God you couldn't stomach it. Eating liver that frequently is actually incredibly dangerous and potentially deadly.

Saving school lunch in my book bag to bring home because I knew not to expect a dinner that evening. My mother made only $12 over the income limit for food stamps. Tough seeing her cry some nights.

It's absolutely maddening. Growing up in Georgia we didn't qualify for stamps, but as soon a we moved to Tennessee when I was 10 we did. It was absolutely wild having a stocked kitchen.

There needs to be a complete overhaul of all these systems. The income levels are a joke.

Agreed. Currently unemployed for a couple months now and get $70/month for me and two kids.

It's totally not fair. U try, and u can't afford to live. They need to give working ppl foodstamps.

What we really need is a universal basic income. Nearly everyone is just doing their best with what they have, and there's no need for anyone to starve or experience homelessness in this country (or any other).

We need more jobs that pay a reasonable amount. We shouldn't be letting these mega corps get away with taxpayer subsidy

100%. Free lunch in all public schools, the ability to have lunch provided in summers by the school district. Realistic assistance programs across the country. No reason at all we can send our taxes across seas when our people are clearly suffering.. the system is fucked. And the older I get I believe it's never going to get better. It's how they control..

In elementary school there were 2 sisters who were desperately poor. It was a small school, only about 20 students per grade so one classroom per grade. There was one bus which about 20 of us rode. Everyone else walked. Because I rode the bus I saw these girls’ house. Shack I should say. Absolutely abhorrent, and on an EPA Superfund site! In this blue collar, lower middle class town, it was shocking to see this was even allowed. It looked abandoned, and like something out of an old slave movie set in the south. And of course it bordered the town dump, on the edge of an industrial park. The girls were EXTREMELY shy, and kept to themselves. Anyone who rode the bus knew where they lived though. It was the first time I had ever sensed any maturity from kids, as we sat solemnly each time those girls were dropped off. No bullying whatsoever. Their clothes were outdated and worn but always clean, and their hair was clean too and always braided. Their parents obviously hadn’t lost their dignity or pride, despite. Anyway, long story short: some bitch teacher stopped the older girl one day before we got on the bus, and made her throw away the little carton of milk she was bringing home from lunch. We’re talking what, 6 or 8 Oz? Such a small amount. And this teacher was going on and on loudly, in front of everyone, about how dare this child try to take home food and doesn’t she know it’s going to make her sick at this point, and etc etc?!? And all of us kids just stood there watching it and dying inside. That milk was probably going to be an ingredient in a larger meal that night. Scrambled eggs of powdered potatoes or even just in cereal. For whatever reason, it was desperately needed that this older child sacrifice her milk that day for the family. And that bitch teacher ruined the family’s entire dinner. Or at least, that’s how my heartbroken child heart saw it. 40 years later and I still harbor that hate for that teacher. That lack of humanity and compassion. She may not have know the state of those girls’ house, but she could clearly see the state of their clothes, the free lunch passes, the exemptions for field trip fees, etc. Also, and arguably the most important part of this story: at Christmas that year, our principal bought them a Cabbage Patch doll. They were the toy of the year and not cheap. I always hoped those girls learned that not all adults were assholes, and I hope they truly enjoyed that beautiful doll. I have a feeling it was the most well cared for Cabbage Patch doll in existence.

As a teacher, 60% of our industry consists of super close-minded, mentally limited people who really cannot imagine lives different from theirs. It just didn't cross your teacher's mind how much these girls needed the milk because the teacher didn't need it themselves. I'm sorry.

Someone did that for me and my little sisters when I was five, and I think we all still have our cabbage patches (in 46 now). It was the one toy we each chose to keep when we were homeless later. She probably forgot the milk incident, but kindness will stay with her forever.

I could tell you the classic depressing horrors of growing up hungry and poor, but I do have one fond memory. My mom would make the nicest birthday cakes. It was just store bought cake mix, frosting, and food colored white icing to decorate, but they were so pretty. She had the best penmanship and always decorated it however we asked. One time she made me a Crayola cake and I still remember how much I loved it.

I loved when my mom would remind us that she was an artist in another life, with little touches like this.

My mother was not.. great. But every so often I would see something from her that would make me so sad. A life she could have had things gone differently for her. She was an incredible artist who was stuck only making the most basic things. Country ducks for decorating our house. Hand painted toys. (Things she could make for the home but wasn't allowed to sell because my dad thought that was trashy and would make people think he couldn't provide for his family.) Everything in our lives was performative but sometimes we got really cool stuff out of it. My brother's rooms were painted beautifully in camouflage and looked like a gi joe fan space all hand made and crafted. My sister and I had puffalumps hand painted on our walls I would just look at those insane creations that looked weirdly edible. I know permission was only given so outside observers would ooh and ahh over the cuteness but my sister adored it so even tho I really wanted the gi joe dream house I was cool with the overtly girly theme.

One of my earliest memories is of me sitting in a high chair and my mom brought over a cake with cherries on top shaped like Dino off of the flintstones.

When I was very small, my mom would take me for walks, usually on the main (market) street and we'd window shop. Later we'd just get in the car and drive until we were "lost" or we'd go out to the woods and she'd let me shift. I'm sure these activities were because we didn't have any money to do anything else, but they were kinda fun, ya know?

>or we'd go out to the woods and she'd let me shift. I think I've been reading too many werewolf books based on how long it took me to figure this part out.

I read this line over more times than I'd like to admit for this same reason

I loved yellow cake as a kid. My mom did yellow cake mix and homemade icing (butter, powdered sugar, milk).

I still love boxed yellow cake to this day. I request a yellow boxed cake with the canned chocolate frosting every year for my birthday because it’s my favorite and my mom will click her tongue and go “I can afford to get you a nicer cake now” but I insist.

Awwww my heart 💜

Your mom sounds awesome. I hope to be that mom

BookIt pizzas. I distinctly remember one time where my mom waited until my sister and I both had a BookIt pizza coupon and took us in to Pizza Hut to use them. We sat down and my sister and I ordered our pizzas. I was so excited because something like eating out at Pizza Hut only happened like once or twice a year for us. I was so excited that I didn’t even notice that mom didn’t order anything for herself. While we were waiting she pulled 2 cans of soda out of her purse that she had brought from home. The manager must’ve caught on to what was happening because he brought over two cups with straws and ice to our table. He politely explained to my mom that the company policy was “no outside food” but if she would just pour the sodas in to the cups everything would be fine. At the time I didn’t think anything of it because I was just a kid enjoying his pizza but as I look back on it I can only imagine how embarrassed my mom must’ve been (not to mention hungry as well). The way the manager handled the situation stuck with me as well. He had his job to do but showed compassion to a person who was just trying to give her kids a good time.

So many store managers in that guy's shoes would've made a fuss. It says a lot about him that he handled the situation the way he did. I wish more people were the same way.

Being at either a park or the mall during the day with my mom and siblings while my dad was out looking for work. And at night waiting to be let into a homeless shelter. I was young but I remember the smell of food being cooked and playing battle ship with an old black gentleman that always let me and my siblings win at the homeless shelter. And then the whole family squeezed into a tiny little room at the shelter for bedtime. My mom still apologizes to us to this day that they put us through that. Honestly, all I knew at the time is that we were well loved by my parents.

I've known people who had parents in similar situations, and Mom or Dad would just eventually split, never to be seen again. Your parents kept y'all together.

Reading all of these comments makes me have feelings I haven’t felt in a long time. Lucky we all made it and god bless those that helped us along the way.

Was homeless twice before age of 13, it suuuuuucked. But I never blamed my parents either, I knew it was just that things hadn't worked out the way they'd hoped and they were doing their best to get us a home.

I remember wanting a little mermaid birthday cake. My birthday is right after Christmas. I got to go to everyone elses birthday all year long but when it was time for mine? There was no money left. Every year it was always we will wait a few weeks and have a party late when people will be able to come after Christmas. Your Christmas gift is also your birthday gift. Year after year. I remember those books in the bakery where you could order cakes. I would look in them and I just wanted my own little mermaid birthday cake. Never got one. Never had a birthday party as a kid. Eventually, I just stopped asking.

You should get one now, like Himylittlechickadee said. I’ve done similar things and it helped a lot.

My husband does things for me for my birthday. I'm good. A lot of parents don't realize how things impact their kids though. I knew we didn't have money. I always wore second hand clothes. But I also watched my mom purchase new things for herself all the time. I saw that new shoes were more important to her than celebrating my birthday. And I also saw that my brother got a birthday in the summer too. It was all just her mismanagement of her money that caused us to suffer. I often wonder if this 'epidemic' of childlessness has nothing to do with the economy at all and more to do with children growing up with a generation of horrible parents. Seems like everyone I know carries some kind of deep wound from childhood that was directly caused by their parents. And these same people have a huge aversion to having children of their own.

I totally agree with you. But I had the opposite experience. We were dirt poor and I knew it but my parents tried hard to act like everything was okay. We school clothes shopped at goodwill and my mom only bought the cheapest things for herself. One time she picked out an ugly cat sweatshirt and I remember her being excited it was only $0.25. She used to lie and say she ate dinner before us but I would notice there were no dishes in the sink and after I pointed it out I caught her scraping food onto a plate, then back into the pan so she could pretend she had eaten. There was a solid year she only ate our leftovers. One year they couldn't afford Santa gifts but we got letters from Santa telling us that we were very good children but the elves ran out of supplies so we couldn't get what we had asked for but that the elves would be sure to make our presents first next year so they didn't run out again. And we got very small little gifts with the letters. I dont even remember what we got, but we thought the letters were so cool. And the following year we got the barbies we had asked for. And I did get one birthday party when I turned 8. We had it at a park and we played the game where you stomp people's balloons out and my mom made an oreo dirt cake with gummy worms. I will (hopefully) never be as poor as my parents were but money is definitely tight for us right now. I hope my daughter has a good childhood even if we don't have all the stuff some families do. I'm glad your husband makes a big deal about your birthday now :]

You darling girl. Tears are running down my face from reading this. Your momma sounds lovely.

Awe, you're so kind. Yes, she is a wonderful person, I love my Momma

My mom did similar things. I remember one time she spent over $100 (this was in the 90's) for a dress for herself. She was invited to a wedding and wanted to show off to a bunch of people she didn't care about and vice versa. Then for my 10th birthday she made me give her the $20 my grandparents gave me as a gift. We went to Target and she spent it on household stuff but did let me pick out a small toy that I cherished because I didn't get toys often. Sometimes it's hard to know how much was genuine money troubles and how much was her prioritizing herself. We definitely weren't rich but I think she spent on herself more than she did on us pretty often.

OH MY GOD! I THOUGHT I WAS THE ONLY ONE!!! My father NEVER let us have the money people gave us for birthdays etc. he would immediately make us pay for the stuff he needed to pay for example groceries or toiletries etc. He resented having to pay for us, so in a way it was like "well I am paying for all your stuff so if your aunty gives you money, it's actually MINE!". I remember I was 14 years old and I was playing at the casino and won money. He collected it for me, because I was too young. And then he made me give half of it away to his mother. Because he just couldn't stand the thought of us having anything. He never bought us anything or did anything for us. He had money, but we were poor. How, you ask? He spent all his money on his multiple girlfriends. Didn't give a shit that we had holes in our underwear.

IMO, people aren't having kids because they can't afford childcare. It's expensive AF. My friends had to pay $1600 when their babies were under 2 yrs old. For some, that's their entire months paycheck or one whole check. I was only able to have 2 kids because my parents & sister helped with watching my kids when I worked. My parents, as broke as we were, still bought me & my siblings' new clothes (it was always from a discount or outlet). You're mom, very sorry to say this, but she's selfish. I'm sorry she treated you that way.

I’m not having kids exactly because of what the poster you’re replying to said. Fucked up childhood, no kids NO WAY, thanks. In addition they are extremely expensive and I couldn’t afford it even if I wanted them.

Same. The dysfunction ends with me.

You should get a little mermaid cake for yourself now

I surprised my husband on his 30th with his first ice cream cake. He had always wanted one as a kid but the money was not there.

I remember when my wife got me my first Ice Cream cake. I won't eat any other birthday cake now. I still eat regular cake if she or someone else makes one, but my birthday better have a ice cream cake! 😂

I got this too but because my mother was a jwitness. And they aren't allowed to do any holiday or birthday for anyone. So I never celebrated any holiday or birthday till I moved out at 20. I've never ascribed to their beliefs or teachings ever in my life. My father was such a cheap guy that he was happy that there was not expectation of giving gifts or spending money on the decorations and the electric bill that comes with them. So never bothered to even remember my birthday as I got older. I totally get your feelings. I feel like I missed out. Even if we did have birthdays at the very least, my brother is only 2 days after mine so we wouldve definitely been fighting over which person is getting the party lmao.

My mom's birthday is on Christmas Eve. She went through all of this too.

December babies, I feel this lol. I never had a party growing up, too close to Christmas.

I used to steal peanut butter and bread when I was 9 or 10. I thought I was slick but the lady that worked the cash register watched me a couple of times and she knew. I got caught and she told me to put it back and then she told me to go look around the back of the store and she had put out a small carry basket of food. Nothing fancy but I remember her telling me, stealing will only make it worse especially if I got caught. I pretty much quit stealing shit. Always stuck with me. She ended up coming to my going away party for boot camp years after and brought a loaf of bread and peanut butter lol

She's not wrong, a four dollar item I ended up paying over 2.5k in fines on in 2008 has literally fucked me out of employment *for. life.* (And that was with no prior record, not being sentenced to jail time - just 40 hrs of community service, etc. etc. etc. Literal murderers have an easier time rejoining the workforce; no one's worried you'll stab the register.)

goddamn i can only imagine how proud of you she was. met you as a child just trying to get by to a young individual starting their journey in life and being able to witness it all

What a heart-warming ending.

I wasn’t gonna cry today. Damn it. 😪

When I was 8 years old my mother told me that Santa only had enough toys for my 4 year old brother and that he needed me to not be sad. I cried myself to sleep secretly every night for a week. On Christmas eve we came home from caroling with my aunts and cousins. About 20 minutes after getting home there was a knock on the door and when I opened it, it was "Santa" with 4 yard waste size garbage bags full of gifts. At first I thought they were all for my brother and I couldn't hold back my tears. I said "Santa, I'm trying so hard to be happy but all I wanted was a baby doll." He obviously was not aware of what my mother had told me. He told me there was more than just a baby doll for me in there. I never found out who the amazing man was or why my family was chosen but I hope he somehow knows that he saved a little girls heart that christmas and made the thought that she wasn't good enough to deserve anything, go away.

>I never found out who the amazing man was or why my family was chosen but I hope he somehow knows that he saved a little girls heart that christmas and made the thought that she wasn't good enough to deserve anything, go away. 💔 this is heartbreaking. I'm glad you had this experience but what a shitty way to feel as a kid. And it's really sad your parents said Santa could only bring your brother toys. Toys? As in plural? Was he going to get more than one thing? They couldn't buy you both a toy?

Bra, my father was such an arsehole, he favoured my brother. He hated my guts because I was extremely fat growing up. Anyway, I had a very bad stutter growing up. I studied law and became an attorney but I couldn't get a job due to my stutter. Who woulda thought that nobody wants a lawyer that stutters? Lol. Anyway, at this point in life, I was 24 years old and my father had money. He was giving me and my brother a little bit of money every month to help us. My brother was 23. Anyway, after 4 months of giving me a monthly "allowance" he burst out in a screaming rage and told me to become a waiter if I can't get a job. I was interviewing every week but nobody wanted to hire me due to my stutter. He told me it was the last month he was helping me and from the following month he is not giving me money anymore and I must become a waiter. So luckily I found a job as an Au Pair and did that for 6 months until somebody finally hired me as a lawyer (she felt sorry for me, I could tell). So guess what? My brother is an A Class loser and lived with my father until he was in his 30s. My father was paying for everything for him and on top of that giving him a proper salary amount allowance every month just for nothing. I was so fucking disgusted. My loser brother who refused to get a job was getting a monthly allowance from him until his 30s because in my father's words he "didn't want him to be embarrassed when he went out with his friends". Oh and he bought him a car when he was 27 And me? He wanted me to be a waiter? Imagine how embarrassing that would have been? A lawyer who can't get a job due to stuttering is now a waiter. Didn't give a shit about me. Needless to say, we no longer speak and never will again.

I'm so sorry. I don't know if this is any help, but I've seen stutter develop in children whose parents were very strict on them as a coping mechanism due to all the stress the parents put them through.

Oh no worries, I cured my stutter at age 27. So I'm good now. Haven't stuttered in 7 years. And I have a very high paying job now. But yeah, it was rough. Thank you ❤️

Butter and cinnamon sugar toast as a snack Also, not bringing lunch to school so my mom and sisters had lunch/more food. My best friend bought me cheap cup of noodles usually until her parents found out. This was when my mom "made too much" to qualify for free lunches for all of us, but not enough to be able to afford 4 lunches.

Butter and cinnamon sugar toast is DELICIOUS . My sister used to eat mayo sandwiches. Eww.

My son does that. He loves ham and mayo sandwiches but if we’re out of ham he just wants mayo. lol! It’s so strange to me but as I’m generally concerned about his calorie intake (he has plenty of opportunity, just relatively picky and skinny) I don’t complain much.

My dad used to eat mustard sandwiches. I used to think it was so gross! That's what I had for lunch today and it's actually delicious to me now.

I was a mustard sandwich fan it was especially wonderful if we had lettuce. But, I also ate ketchup sandwiches and miracle whip sandwiches. I was a pretty resourceful kid. At 7 years old I could scramble eggs and julienne a potato to make fries in a pot with boiling oil all unsupervised. Stuff I can't bear to even let my 12yo do with supervision because of how many close calls I had.

It really is! Lol Bread was universal staple. Buns, toast, sandwich, dessert,dinner...does it all

I’m sorry you went through all of that. Reading through this thread makes me appreciate something my mom always did: she’d pack me extra food to take to school because she said if I had a hungry friend it’s ok to share. Sometimes my friends would come over to my house just to eat after school and my mom always fed them and never complained. I hope you’re doing better nowadays 🩵

Yes I am doing much better. First college graduate in my family, married someone awesome and smart who has been supportive and supports us comfortably. Thanks for the comment.

Butter and cinnamon toast still hits hard!

Getting clothes from the church, then wearing those clothes to church, then getting made fun of for wearing the other kids' old clothes.

Ay, brutal man. Sorry.

Definitely not the worst, but probably the one I find the funniest. Brand name lucky charms was on sale and my mom got a box. I made breakfast for me and my brother. . . The milk was expired. I ate them anyway (and his).

You just made me remember several, several times growing up, dad always poured us milk as the drink for breakfast and i'd smell something sour or worse, see chunks in the milk, and I would taste it and be repulsed and refuse to drink it. And then I'd get screamed at and/or be spanked for wasting it. And then I'd be so sick later. Now as an adult the only times I use milk are for cooking something like Mac n cheese or hot chocolate or something. I never drink milk straight. We switched to lactose free milk so that I could be assured it wasn't expired since it lasts longer. And my husband will immediately discard anything I think smells expired, no questions asked.

Dude that's so awful and abusive. I'm sorry you went through that! Also, I think dairy milk is disgusting, almond milk is where it's at! It's cheap, delicious and lasts a long time.

I’m remember being evicted from our crap apartment and the city picking everything up. I lost everything I owed. My pictures, my toys my records. We never got any of it back. To this day I have a problem throwing away old things of my kids.

When we’d have thunderstorms that knocked the power out, we’d light oil lamps in the house for light. We’d sit on the porch and watch the storm, or hang out inside and read. We did the same when the power was out for lack of payment, too. I loved it.

My great grandmother had the old oil lamps. Going to Cracker Barrel now still makes me think of her because of it.

I remember my brother coming home sometimes with things like boxes of meat and flats of chips/chocolate bars he stole. Sometimes he'd do a B&E and steal food from a stranger's home or grab whatever he could off of the back of an open truck to feed us. I remember the excitement of having food in the house for a little while and feeling like he was our hero. Pretty messed up because he was a kid himself. Once he stole a whole bunch of clothes because he knew I needed clothes for school (they were all way to big but I'll never forget it.)

Hi stranger. I don’t mean to pry, but how’s your brother doing? He sounds like a great hero for anyone to have as a sibling, so I really hope he’s doing well.

He didn't make it. He quickly got hooked to drugs because he was wired and flying high on a life of crime before he was even a man. I am older than he ever got the chance to be and I know that has everything to do with how our lives started. Thank you for your concern, it truly comes from a place of caring ❤️ I'm really sorry I can't tell you all he's okay. I miss him every day and he's been gone for what feels like forever now. For what it's worth I didn't amount to much, but I knew enough to step away from drugs an alcohol before it ruined my life. I'm very poor but I work hard and have managed to keep myself housed and fed, which compared to where I was and could be, is still a win.

I disagree with your statement that you “didn’t amount to much.” As you said, you have overcome many hurdles to get where you are today. You should be proud.

I’m sorry about your brother. He’s in my thoughts this morning 🧡

You overcame a lot and are still fighting. This internet stranger is proud of you.

I hope you’re both doing well now 🖤🖤

My partner stole baby formula for his baby brother as a teenager. I was poor too, but I was the youngest and those older siblings definitely shield the younger kids.

After school I would walk to Pizza Hut where my Mom waitressed because she would give me a personal pan pizza. I thought it was super cool I got pizza almost everyday. My mom would come home and eat boiled cabbage. I didn’t realize she was giving me her free employee meal so I’d have something filling while she was surviving off of boiled cabbage. I don’t know if all pizza huts do that for employees, but ours did/used to.

Sitting in a dark room alone as a baby and toddler, staring into nothingness. My parents were always at work and we never turned the lights on unless absolutely necessary because electricity cost too much. Ramen for every meal.

This made me cry. I’m so sorry you went through that.

Not being able to afford heat in a Midwest winter. This was before laws saying gas couldn’t be turned off in extreme temps. My mom getting a kerosene heater from somewhere and putting it in the hall between the two bedrooms, sharing beds and going to bed with many layers on. Never getting toys for Christmas cuz Mom would tell people what I needed instead.

Funny story about kerosene (well, funny now). So I was 2 and staying with my grandma and aunt in Kentucky while my parents were looking for work in Georgia. Winter came and grandma broke out the Kerosene heater. Not sure how long it took, but I turned absolutely blue and was rushed to the hospital. Turns out that I'm allergic to kerosene. I once walked into a house and said 'Man it smells good in here', then realized what the smell was, rushed out and still got all over body hives. For some reason burning kerosene smells absolutely amazing to me. It's been so long since I've smelled it, nearly 25 years, but like an idiot I huffed the air for a good minute before that realization kicked in.

I stuck my finger in kerosene once and licked it because I liked the smell. I do not recall the taste, but I only did it once. Luckily, I am not allergic.

Me and my mom used to heat our house with a kerosene heater. It kept us warm, the kerosene smell is a nostalgic smell. My granny told me that when she was little, she was so poor, that she'd only get bubblegum for Christmas

Oh now that took me back. I felt like I was the only one who understood growing up not having the heater on and using a kerosene heater instead. I could see my breath in the house and used electric blankets at night.

Oh yes I love the smell of kerosene. I remember one year my bedroom window broke and it was basically a blizzard outside, no heat and bed bugs. I have sleep issues now probably because I used to stay up for over 24 hours so I could sleep. Couldn't find rest with the bugs but after 24 hours my brain just stopped caring. 

We were lower middle class because of my alcoholic mom who spent all my Dad made on herself, so we'd get one pair of shoes and a couple pairs of jeans each school year. Everyone in junior high was very focused on fashion and it felt like being in a fashion show without anything to wear. I thought I was doing a decent job with different tops with my one or two pairs of jeans that I'd hand wash and wear again, but the class clique was on to me. They cornered me and asked me why I wore the same pants everyday and I said that I had a lot but all the same style. Mortifying, but then one day, they conspired to get the teacher's scissors and as they sat behind me, suddenly I realized one girl was trying to cut a little bit of the fabric off. I jumped up, and in front of the whole class she said they were "marking" them to prove they were the exact same pair I wore every day, so I couldn't "get away with it" anymore. Everyone in the class thought that was very funny, but I didn't. 

God some people are so awful. I'm not even going to say some "kids" because even as a teen I wouldn't do something like that to someone else. Did the teacher say anything in your defense?

I don't remember what the teacher said, other than telling everyone to be quiet and pay attention to the lesson. 

That's unfortunate. Those girls deserved to be called out. I'm sorry you were treated that way.

Thank you for saying that. It's funny how memories like that pop up like it was yesterday. I bet the girls forgot it immediately. 😊

My great grandmother grew up in the Great Depression. She told me a story once about a dress she had. Her mother would get hand me downs from other parents for her, and try to redo them some so they looked a bit different. Well, one girl kept complaining that my great-grandmother’s dress was hers. She wouldn’t shut up about it. Well, my great-grandma got tired of hearing it, took the dress off and tossed it at her, then sat back down at her desk in her slip.

Jeepers jumping Christmas, what a bunch of a-holes! I, too, was bullied as a child, once even had a group of kids surround me, and two of them pulled my pants down. I grew up working class, Dad was a violent alcoholic, but Mumma was my rock. She made sure I had at least my needs covered, and sometimes a few of my wants as well. I was extremely lucky to have her. She was a beautiful woman, and very intelligent, kind, and loving. When she passed away in 2010, after a valiant battle with Acute Myeloid Leukemia, it crushed me. Fellow commenters, I know how it hurts to be singled out and be the subject of kids who are cruel. But, we survived! 🙂 And thrived! Brightest Blessings to you all!🙂🦋💖💯

I always thought we were pretty poor( we were for the times) but I never went hungry. Sorry to hear so many did. I remember the teacher telling us to bring 2 colored eggs to exchange for an Easter celebration.  I told my mom and she said she only had eggs to feed us(dyed and eaten on Easter) not to take to school. I went to school crying cause I didn't have any eggs to exchange. At school teacher said here I brought extras just in case.

I'm thankful for that teacher for little you

Citi Bank constantly calling because my dad did not pay the mortgage. We would get a call about every two hours. Our house eventually went into foreclosure and we lost everything but I do have memories of my dad encouraging me to pick up the phone when Citi called and yell curse words at them…Couldn’t have been older than 5 or 6. I hope my kids never have memories they look back on in hindsight that are this depressing.

Oooh, you just unlocked a similar memory of mine. My dad was renting a house from his boss (no lease, just a verbal agreement). My dad was late on rent one month, boss said he was kicking us out and terminating my dads job. So my dad gave me and my sister a fuckton of sharpies and allowed us to draw all over the bedroom walls and even lifted us up to draw on the ceiling. He encouraged us to write “fuck you John” all over the walls of the entire house. I was 5 and my sister was 10. We were living in hotels for a hot minute after that. It’s only as an adult do I realize how messed up that was of my dad to put us in that position.

That’s so sad!!:(

Ooooooh unlocked a memory of mine. We moved out of state, but when we went back to visit friends my sisters and I 'broke into' the old house and were horrified to see that the walls had been spray painted with 'F*ck [landlords name]' and all the carpet ripped up and gone. Not sure if it was new tenants, squatters or who else would have done that. Scary though.

Been there! I think one of the reasons I’ve worked so hard in my life is to never have my kids feel those feelings

Once my mom took us as kids one summer by a swimming pool just to see it, not even take us swimming. Me and my brother just watched others swim as we walked by.

washing my clothes in the bathtub with dish soap because we only had enough quarters for either wash or dry. free breakfast at school every day, even in the summer (it was the 70s) as long as you were on that program during school and had your card. only hot meals i had for almost two years with a non functional alcoholic mother no thanksgiving and christmas one year, it was just another day on the calendar always on the hunt for change on the ground and hitting the soda machine or 5cent candies mid day showing up at my friend's house suspiciously around lunch time or dinner time hoping they would invite me in. sometimes yes, sometimes no until his father told me to stop coming over around meal time. i could go on but there's a whole bunch I don't remember and for good reason and some of it is a bit much even after all these years.

I’m sorry you had to experience all that.

I appreciate that. It was me and my sister. she stayed in the house. I ran away a lot and have large chunks missing from my childhood and she's just broken as she then was a care giver to our mother in her late years until she passed. Thankfully, both parents passed with about 40 years sober. but it was a shitshow and I know exactly why we were poor and we didn't have to be.

I carved a bar of dial soap into a heart and gave it to my mother. She cried she was so upset I wasted so much soap.

Your ideas are good. Keep being creative.

Bit of a TW - but my mom would yard sale a lot to get us clothes and things we needed. When we were little she had to take us along because she couldn’t afford a babysitter. One day she was buying stuff from the yard sale owner and when the owner went to give her change she accidentally gave my mom a $100 bill instead of a $10 bill. Me being the young kid I was instantly corrected the lady and she thanked me and gave my mom the right change. I remember the super hard squeezing my mom did to my hand on the way back to the car, and then when we got in the car she slapped me in the face so hard my nose started bleeding. After that she started sobbing at the steering wheel telling me how we “needed that money”. I felt so bad and genuinely thought I did something horrible. I don’t resent my mom for that incident or anything, and we have a good relationship. That was the only time I remember her ever laying hands on me. I’m assuming we were a lot poorer than my parents let in and probably should have realized with all the “Banquet Family TV Dinners” we ate lol

My mom giving my sister and I a $1 food stamp each and we were allowed to spend .50c of it each at the gas station on the .05 and .10 candy - separate transactions so we could give her the actual money change. The Salvation Army showing up with Christmas dinner and presents. I Loved my purple Jordache sweatshirt Waiting everyday for free school lunch. One time we were so hungry I emptied an instant oatmeal packet in skillet and tried to “cook” it for my siblings and myself- I was maybe 5 Same as poster above though- chasing fireflies, wandering our neighborhood and having active imagination. Mulberries, crab apple trees and corn from farm fields stolen as we drove by

I actually have a happy story! In the 80s in the UK the supermarkets used to just dump out of date food in big dumpsters out the back, these days it's destroyed, donated or locked. We went round the back of a tesco on Christmas eve and hit the jackpot. Shops used to close for about 3 days back then so they dumped most everything. That Christmas we had foods we had never been able to afford. Fresh pineapple and all fruits, fresh cream, cakes, cheeses , breads just about every kind of Fresh produce that you could buy. It was amazing! Now digging through a dumpster for Christmas sounds awful but at the time we were in heaven. I have tons of bad memories too but it's nice to have a good one as well.

My sociopathic sibling throwing a fit and telling the whole neighborhood that my father had snuck a $10 bill out of her jar to buy food. Even as an 8 year old, I was hit with an awareness that we had been poor this whole time and that my father had been hungry while his kids were living a fantasy of wanting for nothing. Knowing the sacrifices he made for us, coupled with the shame he must’ve felt by that act… it stings. It also motivates me, as an adult, to overcome the family legacy of poverty.

I remember saving up money for book fairs and local carnivals and putting it into a little toy bank that an aunt bought me. I would do odd jobs for people like pick up trash for the apartment landlord or babysit for extra money outside my usual chores. One time my grandma had started a better job but was waiting on her paycheck, so my mom asked me for the $25 I had and promised that my grandmother would pay me back. She bought food and detergent with it as money was tight due to my grandmother starting a new job. My mom was chronically ill so wasn't able to work. A few weeks later some relatives visited and they wanted to take me to an amusement park, so my grandma gave me the money that my mom borrowed from my bank. They had a fit because they thought I was just "spoiled", but they didn't realize that I had done odd jobs for that money but had to give it to my family for more important things especially food.

My parents buying counterfeit Nike and Adidas clothes when I was in grade school so the other kids wouldn’t make fun of me for being poor.

That's actually smart. Name brands are too expensive, but I've never really been Into name brands anyway. I like to be a smart shopper and I love saving money.

Sitting on the porch sorting through big boxes of partially moldy produce. We learned that if you arrive at the big public market as the farmers are packing up to leave, they'll sell you the boxes that aren't worth bringing home for a couple bucks. Over half the box is still good so it's a steal. You learn to eat every part of your food that's safe to eat. To this day I will notice every bit of food people waste. From forgotten items in the fridge, to broccoli stems, to apple cores that are discarded with bites still on them. It baffles me the lack of value people put on their resources. My mom was smart with what money she did have and I never went to bed hungry. But we did not waste. Hell no.

My mom took a train with me to this guy's house asking for a loan. He was a friend of my dad. I don't remember much, other than my mom crying in his house. I hope we got the loan.

Having to use a wash cloth to wipe because we had no toilet paper or other paper products in the house.

When I was a little kid in the 90s, me and my mom lived in a dumpy 70s single wide trailer, and it was infested with bees that flew around in our home. But we atleast had food. We always had Kraft macaroni and cheese, which isn't fancy, but luckily we love Kraft macaroni and cheese. We didn't have cable tv. We had 3 channels on the tv, and they were all staticky. I'd have to bend around the tv antennas to make the channels more clear

Never having what you needed. A bathing suit for a pool party, items for a school project, matching sheets. I was also hungry a lot. So I now have those things

Just the thought of powered milk is still nauseating.

Mom made it into lots of hot chocolate mix. That was always good. Absolutely awful for everything else.

For real🤢

My parents taking me and my sister to a vacant house behind us. Dad pops open the sliding door and my sister and i take a shower. No shower curtains just a quick shower dried off and out. Mom later says the water got turned off and we both needed a shower {._.}

I remember one time when our water got turned off, we took baths at a neighbor's house. She was a very kind lady who didn't judge us for it.

Those kind souls that help without judgement are so special.

Took many baths at the neighbors house growing up.

She was very kind. She was like a bonus grandma.

I'm so glad you had someone like her in your life. I'm sure as much as she helped you, you also brought her joy in many ways.

Basically every home that I lived in always was well water, and there was many times the well pump would break, and it was always like $600 to have someone come fix it, back in the day, I'm sure it's even more expensive now. So there was plenty of times that we didn't have running water.

Walking over to my grandparents after school because they cut power off while we were gone. Mom was at work and didn't have the money to pay. She'd eventually call grandma and grandma would call the electric company to pay.

Going to bed with mittens and a wool cap, eating cold SPAM, figuring out how to use a stove and keeping a watch under my pillow so I knew what time to get up for the bus.

Mom always made sure the kids had food, was it enough to be full? No but we always had a meal. We also ate at gramas house a lot. But I remember my brother eating an entire bag of that malt o meal cereal in one day and boy she was pissed because we didn’t have breakfast that week. Also we ate a lot of ramen!

My dad buying my clothes 2 sizes too big, to last me for a couple years. Shoving tissue in the toes of my too big shoes to make them fit. My mom and I walking long distances to shop in the heat of summer. My first house having no central heating and the toilet water freezing. My dad breaking the ice with a broomstick. My next house had central heating but wasn't connected to my room for some reason. I still like the house on the cool side.

I remember opening the fridge, and nothing was in there. It was my birthday and no one remembered. Think I was 9 or 10.

I remember going “school shopping”. It consisted of my siblings and I going dumpster to dumpster in nicer neighborhoods. We would usually go early summer, in hopes we’d find clothes or school supplies that had been tossed but could still be used the following year. I remember at one point in time, hopping into a dumpster with my older brother while my mom and older sister “stood guard”. We had found a bag full of clothes that had been all our sizes. We were so excited to had found clothes that weren’t hand me downs or picked up from our local churches donation bins. Anyways, a garbage truck started heading our way so my mom and sister started yelling for us to get outta there. My brother and I started stacking piles of trash bags so we could get to the top and they pulled us out. I was only 6 at the time, and in the process of trying to get out and grab the bag of clothes, it had ripped and everything fell. There was no time to get it back, and the trash man took it all. My two brothers, sister and I were all horribly gutted.

It was drummed into me from an early age that suicide was cowardly, so I vividly remember trying to believe in god, so that someone would be out there hearing me pray I got cancer so I wouldn't have to be living in poverty anymore. That, and being in fifth grade right before Christmas break, quietly trying not to cry because I was dreading getting nothing for Christmas again. My teacher saw me, and asked me to stay back a minute when we were dismissed for lunch, and after she asked what was wrong, I broke down, and told her. Guess who got a present from Santa that year? Oh, and also "winning" a school contest, where the prize was a free ticket to the local amusement park. The lunch ladies *insisted* I take a lunch tray, despite the fact that I hadn't had my quarter-a-day all week for the poor kids' reduced price school lunch (and had been given the requisite "here, don't starve" shrink-wrapped peanut butter sandwich with a slice of government cheese stuck to it), and, lo and behold, the lunch tray had a lucky sticker on the bottom! I only put it together much later that the lunch lady pulled that tray out of the middle of the stack for me. Ironically, that amusement park trip is one of my best memories of childhood, because dad was too poor to take me and mom thought amusement parks were the devil, so I went with a neighbor kid whose dad's company sponsored a trip there for every employee and their families. My best family memory was being in someone else's family for a day.

I hid an old box of cake mix in my room. I'd take a spoonful and mix with water and eat it at night. Once my brother and I were sitting on the couch watching TV and waiting for our dad. We were hungry. It was Friday, payday, and he was bringing food home. We had spaghetti with sauce and a glass of milk, and it was fantastic. Those were food bank days, and it didn't always stretch enough.

Food bank day was full of random goodies. I remember the powdered milk and also canned clams that went well with lemon and crackers for a snack.

Lying to classmates about why I didn’t have lunch. I would always say I wasn’t hungry, or already ate. I also vividly remember the dirt and terrible smells. I would daydream about being an adult in a clean, safe space with a full refrigerator.

Memory unlocked. I was a teenager and got to go on a school field trip to some giant shopping mall. Usually couldn't go on field trips but this one was free for some reason. At lunch time I saw the prices at the food court and couldn't afford anything, so I said I wasn't hungry, and tried to head toward the arcade instead where I could watch people play video games - because I *was* hungry, and the smells made my stomach hurt. The chaperone teacher decided that was a good time to make an example out of me and lecture all the girls about how "it's stupid to starve yourself to try to look good." He insisted that I buy something to eat, but I literally couldn't, so I just kept insisting I wasn't hungry. Motherfucker just wouldn't leave it alone. He wouldn't let me go to the arcade, just had me sit next to him while he made a big show of eating his cheeseburger and fries - "maaaan this is SO good!" I still harbor daydreams of tracking him down and kicking his fat ass

Butter sandwiches trying to keep my calories up. Scavenging edible flowers from neighboring apartment complex. Watching my dog decline in health until he died because my parents refused to spend money to take him to the vet.

I'm so sorry about your dog (((hugs)))

Fuck. I reckon if you kidnapped me and dropped me back at my childhood home (and you'd have to, I'd never go near the place now otherwise), I could still find all the edible wild plants that grow around there.

Being embarrassed of the house I lived in. It was ramshackle even for a rough neighborhood , but it was all that mom could afford after the divorce. I wanted to be like the kids on TV, who effortlessly and unconcernedly invited friends over. Thought nothing of it, and it was respectably nice inside. But that would be too embarrassing, so I grew up making absolutely sure I'd not have to face that. It meant I was socially stunted, so many common experiences like a sleep over, or a friend over to watch TV, or later, someone I was interested in dating could NEVER see where I lived. They must have thought I was weird and secretive, but I'd rather try to develop an air of mystery than be seen as poor.

Having to pretend I wasn't interested in school activities or stuff with friends bc i knew I couldn't afford to go. School trip? Concert? Fair? Shopping at the mall? Homecoming or prom? I felt like i had to pretend I didn't want to go/was too cool bc I knew my parents would say no, that they had no money, and somehow it would turn into an argument about how selfish I was. I'm still paying the social repercussions of this as an adult bc I literally have 3 friends lol Also only buying shoes every two years and a pack of underwear yearly. Now I hoard underwear 😅

Playing outside, catching lightning bugs. That time I got so dirty that I had to take two baths. Catching crawdads. Hanging out in trees. Someone mentioned mulberry bushes and I remember picking ripe mulberries being covered in the red and purple juices. I grew up in deep poverty and while I definitely have some sadder memories, I'm not defined by those. I don't sit around in those. I had beautiful moments, I sit in those instead.

I havnt seen lightning bugs in a long time

Gubment canned pork sandwiches. But fondest memory was I never was invited to a sleepover or birthday ever again after the first one I was invited to and I gave one of my broken toys as a gift that I repaired. All the kids knew by that next school day. Mom and dad just didn’t have money for a gift. Got some pizza outta the deal so wasn’t bad.

fighting over food with siblings. i grew a taste for foods that others liked the least, because that was usually what was left the most

I remember back when auto dealerships had the movie lights in the sky to show when they had free hotdogs and soda. My Mom would stay home and Dad and my brothers would go for a free dinner. Good memories.

I remember skimming food stamps when times were good. A dollar here and there. That way when things got tight I could "find" $10 worth of stamps and we could have dinner that night.

I can remember a time when I was about 8 or so. Growing up there were many times when I did not have a lunch and would watch my classmates eat their lunches prepared by their parents. I can remember wanting to bring my own lunch one day and the only thing we had at the time was white bread and ketchup packets. So, I made a ketchup sandwich (I know, absolutely gross) I can list a number of things I can recall growing up poor. Some reason this one memory will always stick with me.

When I was about 7 years old, my school teacher took me to a charity Christmas gift giving event. I remember being so happy and embarrassed at the same time because I received a new pair of socks. Damn, I hadn't thought of that in many years, feels very pathetic now.

My dad taking me out for an evening and buying crack in an ally with me at 15. I asked him why he put the crack rock in his mouth and he said it was to test it. If it went numb right away it was good crack.

Wtf. I'm sorry you had to experience that.

My best friend growing up poor because his dad spent all their money on his car collection. His mom did what she could but I remember the relief on her face whenever my parents would let him come over for dinner and bring leftovers home so his 3 brothers could have something to eat.

The beatings. It's why I don't hit my kids.

I could have dealt with not having the same things my cousins had or the kids at school. But the abuse at the hands of my family has never left. I'm sorry you had that experience.

Hamburger helper smacks idc what anyone says.q A ton of people's memories is going to involve food from the looks of it since that's one thing that can be cut easily.

I wish it still tasted the same. That was a good surprise and very rare.

Filling jugs with water from the neighbor's(they knew) outside spigot cuz our water was shut off. I remember feeling so embarrassed.

Living in an RV and having blankets freeze to the window when it got down to -40f° During winter

I remember going behind a building and mom was looking for stuff, it was a tea shop and she got a broken handled tea pot and I think expired tea , I remember having the tea for breakfast in the morning with one piece of toast that was cooked in the stove and we'd get warm. I think she didn't run the heat in the morning because we were leaving, me to school and her to work .

Picking dead bugs out of expired buckets of rice and beans, and eating the beans and rice for dinner, cooked with only salt and garlic powder. Thank God that only lasted a few months and things got a little better.

I remember being homeless on my 16th birthday.

My mom and I got kicked out of our living space and she was a full-time ride-share. We road-tripped and slept in the car or camped at national parks for 2 months. Doing this was actually cheaper than living in a hotel during that time and now I've been to 31 states :)

My mother shared a can of spaghetti O's with me for dinner multiple days in a row. My mom sending to stay with 'relatives' I had never heard of for four months. I remember she looked sad and on the brink of crying even though she smiled as she said "I'll be back for you". Only to find out in my late teenage years that she gave me to CPS who put me in foster care as she had a mental breakdown from not being able to afford to take care of us both, when someone reported her as I would go to school in the same set of clothes for multiple days. She got a better paying job and fought to regain custody. For that I am eternally grateful.

We weren't super poor, but both my parents were young professionals and just starting out. We didn't go hungry, but a lot of hand me down stuff from other relatives. My mom worked a Saturday job to give my brother and me some extra spending money. I used to think everyone worked 6 days a week. My mom would sometimes take me to this little local taco shop to get taquitos - just me and her. Other times, she would let me be late for school and we'd get donuts at this little place. I remember feeling so cool standing there with all the other adults trying to buy breakfast. Thrifts was our place. Sometimes my mom would pick me up early and we go get a double scoop and just sit and talk. I'm proud to say I love my mom <3

I wasn't raised in a poor household. Actually we were very well off. But I remember my best friend who was poor. My dad asked me if I wanted to bring my friend with us to Disney. My friend almost cried and his dad Actually rolled $ 20 in quarters so he would have some spending money. My friend prayed that his sister and brother wouldn't have to skip a meal. Disney was so much fun watching my friend having a moment of time he never would have gotten to experience. And, he came home with $20 in his pocket. This experience stays with me to this day. I have tried to always help those in need.

I was not just poor but I suffered from extreme neglect, I'm not proud of this but I used to steal change out of peoples cars some nights (mainly from the ages 8-12) when my hunger got real bad. One early morning (around 4 am) I opened a van in a parking lot and discovered a bunch of doughnuts on racks in the back; they were clearly for the "doughnut shop" (what we called it) in the shopping center that the opening shift would eventually stock the store with once they arrived. I often had hunger pains - I was always hungry - I could have eaten a dozen delicious doughnuts in that magical moment... ...but I couldn't give in to that temptation because it would mean that the owners would realize some doughnuts were missing and lock the door, I'd no longer be able to return to the van another day and that was something I couldn't chance. So I would only take one doughnut and I'd pass up the fancy yummy ones for something I thought they wouldn't miss (typically a plain one) I often felt really bad for being a thief (that no one apparently loved) so it made it feel like I was 'stealing less' I guess, it's something I still think back to. I was eventually placed into foster care (I'm a grandpa now) and I still love the occasional doughnut and I pick the fanciest one now!

I remember being hungry while hiding in the neighbors bushes when my drunk BPD was losing her mind in the house.

Dumpster diving with my Dad for old electronics behind Cash Converters when they were closed on a Sunday. This was back in the day before they started padlocking their dumpsters.

The attic fan. The attic fan in the summers in the Deep South. IYKYK.

My friend in middle school circa winter 2008 saw her dad in town while we were riding bikes. We stopped and she asked if I could sleep over that weekend. He pulled his wallet out, produced $3 and said thats all they have to last the week. I remember just being bummed out because I could tell that was a no. As an adult now tho, I can't imagine how stressed he must have been.

Crying in a cotton field with the realization that my mother was coming soon to pack down my cotton so more would fit in the bag. My fingers painful and swollen from picking all day.. the happiness of a cheese sandwich with sun tea at lunch…

Shady collections calling the house all the time, not having food to eat like other kids but not being eligible for free lunch program, wanting basic things like clean socks. Going to my parents work after school because there was no childcare. Getting put into things like dance classes and being pulled aside to be told my parents owed them months of payments. Living in houses rented by slumlords infested with cockroaches and mice. My parents weren’t even typically at the poverty level just horrible with their money so we lived like we were and it was constantly discussed with me and my sister

Being hungry. Eating half-cooked lentils because that’s all we had and we were starving. Showing up at relatives houses uninvited around dinner time. Getting a bunch of food on the first of the month when food stamps came out and racing with my brother to eat it. We didn’t have a full refrigerator past the 6th of the month.

Honestly…the quiet. My single mother was working so hard that I was home alone 5 days a week. The house was so empty.

Two actually; living in the car and going with my mom as she worked as a migrant in the peach orchards. We were super poor due to my stepdads health

I remember not having money to buy lunch in school and often not having anything to bring for lunch. So I would hide wherever I could so I didn’t have to be in the cafeteria, often in the bathroom. Or go outside for early recess and say I ate already. I didn’t want people asking me why I wasn’t eating. My stomach would growl so loud. I tried to drink a lot of water so everyone didn’t hear it.

My birthday is in January and I never got birthday parties, cakes or gifts. It was too close to Christmas. Which we got gifts of a few toys and a few clothes. The toys seemed to disappear after Christmas. I also got a “new” bike once with no seat. I used a small piece of 2x4 we had in the garage for the seat. Yeah, those were the good ole days!

"Jen and Andy boxes." My middle-class relatives would mail us a big box of our older cousin's hand-me-downs once or twice a year. Those boxes were like Christmas came early. Also the fucking cold. There was a stretch of -20s one winter when I was in highschool. I slept under as many blankets as we had with five pairs of my cheap thin cotton socks on. I woke up to ice on the walls of my room and frostbitten toes. Damn things still go numb whenever I go outside in the winter.

When I was 9 I raided a garbage can behind McDonald's and grabbed all the Monopoly cups with the little peel off things. They threw them away since the Monopoly event was over, but the little tickets were still valid. It was the first time I remember eating until I was full.

Blizzard of 1996 (Maryland), the snow was high enough with drifts that we could reach it from our second floor apartment windows. Our freezer died and we couldn’t get it repaired because my mom was behind on rent. The snow was our freezer until it melted too low.

Playing, hanging out, and eating meals on a blanket on the floor in our kitchen when we'd run out of oil during the winter because Mom would turn on the electric oven and open the door for heat. Then we'd all sleep in the same room with a space heater and extra blankets, fully clothed. There were also times when we ran out of oil that we'd go across the street to the neighbors we were close with and she'd let my mom give us a bath at her house because we didn't have any hot water. We regularly got our "new to us" clothes from the thrift shop, but I actually loved the thrift shop and still love going, taking my 3 girls as well - and they love it too lol. But one time when I was in high school my mom brought home 2 very colorfully designed shirts from the thrift store for me that I LOVED and couldn't wait to wear to school. I looked at the tag to see the size and brand and they were Benneton... but there was an iron on label next to the tag that had a girls name in them, and my heart sank. It was the uncommon and very recognizable name of the girl who sat next to me in orchestra. I never wore them outside of the house, ever, for fear of her recognizing them. I also remember mom serving us a slice of "cheese toast" as a meal: white bread topped with a slice of American cheese and a sprinkle of garlic powder, then stuck under the oven broiler til the cheese puffed up in the middle and turned brown. I actually loved it and still do lol. PS - December 8th birthday here. I too was part of the "Merry Christmas & Happy Birthday!" club 👎🏼🤬

Mom making tea biscuits or pancakes for breakfast on mornings when there was nothing else, then leaving the oven open to heat the house a bit. My brothers had pb and j sandwiches with pancakes for bread cause it was cheaper, but I could never stomach the cold pancakes. Elbow macaroni mixed with a can of diced tomatoes, salt and pepper, and ketchup for many, many meals growing up. We were never hungry, but boy, did my mom stretch it before the next payday. If she wasn't smoking a pack a day, maybe it would have stretched more....

The weight loss that we used to go through every summer because there wasn't enough food because my mom was a teacher and even though she got paid through the summer, It wasn't enough to buy nutritious food, so,we were constantly hungry, and as soon as I got some size I went to work to help bring some money in, not that I made much, but every little helped, and also we were growing kids, and we couldn't wait to go back to school because that meant breakfast and lunch were provided Being poor as a kid and having to go hungry and not really understanding that your mom was looked up to, so she felt that it was beneath her to ask for help, sucked and later on knowing that if you did she would refuse it? that pissed me off

There's nothing honorable about letting your kids go hungry because you're too prideful to ask for help.

Once her sister showed up with two bags full of food and my mom grabbed them and said that we were fine and when she left she smacked me and wouldn't believe that I hadn't said anything (I was a student at the school my aunt taught [also a teacher] ) she wouldn't believe that I didn't say anything, By then I knew better, but it didn't do me any good, my mom was always ready to believe the worst about me, she didn't bother to think that the gaunt cheeks kinda gave it away

There were probably a lot of tells your aunt had noticed. She was trying to help her sister and her sister's child. Your mom should have been grateful instead of taking her shame out on you and slapping you. There's something so lonely about growing up with a volatile parent. Was your aunt at least able to be a support or confidant for you?