Leaving Home

I always thought I was grown and could make it on my own but boy was I wrong!!! It’s been about 11 years since leaving the bird’s nest and I must say it was wonderful at first then reality set in. I didn’t have mom to cook for me anymore, I didn’t have dad to give me money anymore I had to be a big girl now. I had my oldest son when I was a senior in high school so I had to grow up pretty fast. I never went off to college or had roommates that would turn into lifetime friendships all I had was my son and a crazy baby daddy. I started my independency when I was 18, in a housing authority apartment that I did not like. It was a two-bedroom apartment that had cement floors, which stayed cold in the winter and hot in the summer. I didn’t have a job when I moved out so my rent was $9 per month, which was lovely compared to the mortgage I have now. I received $240 dollars a month in food stamps and thought I was living the life. Finally reality set in and I realized I wanted more out of my life. I wanted to go to college, get a job, and make something out of myself. I started working full time and enrolled at York Technical College full time when my son was 6 months old. I lost all my food stamps and my rent went up to $240 per month because I got a job making $7 per hour. I thought that was messed up because I went from living a ghetto fabulous life to struggle because I got a job. I thought that government assistance would help the ones that were helping themselves but I was wrong. My opinion about government assistances changed at that point. It seemed to me that the system was made to hold you down, not to push you forward. I saw then that I needed to get out from under the system and attempt to make a good life for my son, and me oh and my baby daddy. So when I got my first raise on my job I went apartment hunting and went from paying $240 per month to $585 per month and felt a lot better with paying more because I didn’t have to report my income to anybody anymore. Well to make a long story short I ended up letting my baby’s daddy go, moved back home twice between the ages of 19 to 22 which by that time I was use to having my own space so it didn’t last long, at the age of 23 I was free as a bird living on my own with my son. I got out and I don’t plan on going back. I love my parents but we have a better relationship when we’re not under the same roof and now I have a husband and three kids so I know I won’t be going back.