Way back in 2008, I have a co-worker/friend who happens to be a single parent. She has two kids, the eldest is 12 and the youngest is 7. The good thing is that she was able to get financial help from her ex husband who already moved on to a 2nd family. She worked as a technical support Representative and was earning $1410 a month. Basically, she was paying for their room rent, electricity and water, food, clothes, and school obligations. Every paycheck, nothing was left on her salary and she usually ask her friends to lend her some for her transportation going to work. Really it is a very hard situation and I can’t see myself going through the same routine every single day of my life. She’s really hardworking and pushing herself. I always tell her to take some time and rest but she just can’t do that. She’s a mother and has to work for herself and most of all, for her kids. Though I don’t have kids yet during that time, I can relate to her since I was raised by a single parent.
I can see that she wanted to give up at times, but she has just so much energy to do the same routine every day. Wake up at 4am to prepare the kids, she will leave with her kids at 5:30 and send them to school then she will go straight to work though our office hour is from 9am-5pm..She will travel 2 hours from school to our office, by 7:30, she’s already in and is working already..Since she’s a call center agent, it was allowed to work before her regular working hour. She will work until 5pm. Will be home at 7-8pm depending on the traffic flow, will cook dinner, teach her kids and send the kids to bed. Yes, she don’t have social life since her life is revolving around her kids but every once in a while, I treat her to a spa just to help her relax and remove the stress. I can see so much of my mother to her, wanting to do some things for herself but cannot do because my mother always thinks of me first.
Raising children is a full-time, life-time endeavour. We, as parents, have to do everything we can for the best of our children. Hearing stories of single parents stepping up like my friend did renew my faith in mankind. I know there are other stories out there, too.
