When Life Hits

December 2018, homeless, cold, hungry and tired. My family and I sat in the comfort of our car in the post-office parking lot trying to decide what to do now that my step-dad has lost his job and we have been evicted. We would have spent the night in that car parked outside the post office. My mother suggested we call her mom for help and my step-dad soon agreed. Now, up in Grass Valley we ate a delicious meal made by my grams and slept like babies in her very warm comfortable home. My grams assisted us with a storage for our belongings and aided us as much as she could; however, with her living in a senior area she was only allotted a few guests for approximately 60 days and then they had to leave. So, we did.

My mother became very ill, and with me being 17 my step-dad kicks me out and drops me off near my grandmother’s house. I stayed with her for about 3 months and then she sent me to my aunt in Citrus Heights. My aunt enrolled me into an independent study school where I met my best friend, Trent Lawson. I get a job, I act in a play with my two cousins, I celebrate my birthday for the first time in like 9 years, I get in touch with my biological father who I hadn’t seen in 13 years and on October 10th, 2018 my other aunt and grandmother come pick me up from school after I had a bad ( long and stressful ) day they try to get me some food ...I wasn’t hungry (they were); and to lift my spirits they took me shopping. When we arrived back at my aunt's house they called a meeting. My cousins were out having a sleepover so it was just my uncle, my grams,my two aunts and me. They sat me down and dropped the world's biggest bomb on me. My grams had been “upset” all afternoon and I didn’t know why until then. They found out my mother passed away. The thing that irked me most is that she passed 06/6/1018 and they waited MONTHS before telling me. I was devastated; one of my aunts stayed the night in my room.

The next day I got up at 5 a.m as usual to get ready for work. That was until my other aunt said she called and told them I wasn’t going to go. I was pissed and went to work anyway. The aunt that stayed in my room drove me. Once there I’m told to go home. I don’t know what came over me but I started to cry. My manager once I regained control of myself gave me a free venti Mocha Cookie Crumble Frappe and delicious burrito and my aunt I think had a Caramel Frappe. And we left. My aunt then took me to the D.M.V to get my California I.D. Months later I quit my job at Starbucks and began classes at the Sacramento Job Corps Program.

When Covid hit I left and moved in with my dad, his wife and his kids. I got a job at Dollar Tree. My dad kicks me out too. A few months down the line I met the love of my life. He invited me to stay with him. I get another job at K.F.C I then move into somewhat of my own place. My job gets shut down. I got a new one 3 days later just to be laid off a week later due to too many workers. I move in with my granddad on my dad’s side and then come back to school.

Moral of the story: life sucks, keep going, enjoy the little things in life and you have a chance at some occasional happiness. As of now my best friend is serving in Korea, my dad and I didn’t talk for months however, we recently made amends, my ex well that’s ...complicated still love him a lot and recently we started talking again he and I have a better bond than we did a few months ago and I am very pleased with how far we've come, work wise unemployed, classes are a pain (sometimes), I’ve made new friends learned new and valuable things like how to interact and communicate better my physical and emotional status has also improved. I’m learning to be happy and live in the moment. So far it’s working. I thank God I have become more positive and happy with my life.