I Grew Up Poor

When I was a kid (about in my teens), I hadn't realized why we had to file for bankruptcy or why my mom got food out of the trash where she worked and that's what we were supposed to eat. Also, my clothes and shoes never fit, and teens can be such jerks about that without realizing something might be going on.

My dad had a gambling problem. He lied a lot. He'd say he got mugged or he had one of his diabetic spells and while he was out, he got robbed. Turned out that he lost whole paychecks on bets. They weren't paying the bills. My mom hadn't known. After she found out, she took over the finances. She never trusted him with money again after that.

It's the biggest reason they got into fostercare too; for extra money. That started another problem for a different story though.