I remember thinking back in the third or fourth grade on whether or not I’d quit school, whether I’d go on to graduate high school. I hated school. I hated the social and mathematical aspect of it. I was slow. In the fifth grade I realized quitting wasn’t an option, but I needed more than just a high school diploma. Because I am poor I can’t really afford my education. I can’t afford that better job that requires that degree. I can’t afford my paycheck for the months or years of work I’d do. I am slow, but only because no one told me I’d need more than high school. We didn’t know, in the time between the 90’s and 2010’s how were we supposed to make up for lost time we spent being kids in the street. How could we? I can’t afford my job all because I was caught up in the world and not an education. A degree is a miracle that is given a price because some want to repress it.

I know people who can’t afford a better job since they can’t afford the education they need. I know there are jobs out there that will pay for your schooling, but what about those that don’t? I can’t be paid to study to be a teacher, I can’t afford my job and it can’t afford me. Some families can’t afford to put their kids through school and sometimes the help they receive from grants or scholarships just isn’t enough. I have five thousand covered, but what about that other twenty thousand I need? What about the four years I need for my degree? Who’s here to help those that can’t afford a job? I can’t live off flipping grease filled burgers. I can’t use that money I earn for school. What about bills? My car broke down, how can I fix it without money? I need a few thousand to help my grandmother with her surgery when insurance won’t cover it but half the price, I can’t make enough to save myself so how can I help her. Whatever tip I could earn that goes toward my degree has to be used for something just so I can take care of myself or my family. I need an education, I need my degree, but I can’t afford it, since I can’t afford a job.