Stuck in the Cycle...

So I just read some posts by Nancy about people receiving assistance from the government and it prompted me to want to tell the story of my sister.

First I will start by saying she had 4 kids (none planned) by the time she was 23 (which is the age I am now). She was with a good for nothing guy and they were all into drugs. She pretty much made ALL the wrong choices and to make a long story short ended up married to the dude with 4 kids and no job. She was on absolutely every type of assistance that you can think of... free daycare (even though she did not work), foodstamps, WIC, and assisted housing. As Nancy suggested, once you get stuck in the government assistance circle it is hard to get out. She went on with this for a couple years, receiving all the assistance that she could and having no problem with it. She did not get a job because then she would lose all her assistance and end up worse off than with assistance. Keep in mind a lot of this time she was just plain selfish and at one point probably did not deserve her kids. I wouldn't go as far to say she was neglecting them but she just didn't care like she should have.

Then its almost like a lightbulb went off in her head and she realized how she was not only holding herself down, but holding her children down. She divorced the dude and got a job. When she got the job ALL of her assistance was taken away from her besides help with daycare. She was just as worse off if not more worse than when she was on the assistance but that was OK with her. Slowly but surely she has started to make more money and be able to provide for her and her children much better.

She still receives assistance for daycare, but as you can imagine daycare for 4 children is not the cheapest. She is living almost completely on her own income and is so much happier and is living a much better quality of life. Yes, she receives some government assistance and just got cable TV. Some may say... if she can afford cable then she should be able to pay for all her own daycare. Most of the time I would agree... but I feel like my sister deserves this "luxury" of cable TV for all that she has been through and how far she has come.

I just wanted to tell the story of someone who successfully made it out of the horrible cycle of receiving government assistance and say, even though it may be hard at first losing all assistance, it is worth it in the long run to actually feel like you have accomplished something and that you are providing for your children rather than the rest of the country doing it for you. At first she thought "Wow, so easy to keep receiving assistance... why would I stop?" but after getting out of it, she is living such a better quality of life.

I am VERY proud of my sister and how far she has come.