Would You Give Away Your Money?

Let me share a personal story with you...

Way back in the day when I was younger...

My mom, who was a single mom, had a really bad breakup with my dad.

She didn't have a lot of skills, and she was really struggling to provide for me and my brother.

At that point, we were basically running as far away as we could from my dad.

And it led us to become homeless...for 3 straight months in the middle of New York City.

We lived off my mom's Pinto Station Wagon, eating Skittles and Slim Jims for dinner.

Fast forward to High School...

I was lucky to have myself free lunch...

And it's because my mom paid for it with her food stamps...

Which left me feeling really embarrassed...

Take note - I was still young at the time, and I didn't really comprehend how to take any of that in.

But I just found myself asking the same questions...

"Why me?", "Why this?"

Eventually as I got older...I understood what my mom had to go through.

And it's led to me to have a deeper connection with people who have gone through the same things...

More than any other person that has been fed with a silver spoon in their mouth.

And to be honest...

I'd rather hang out with those people.

And it's because they understand gratitude...

They understand the meaning of the little things in life...

Which leads me to share what happened the other day - while me and my family were shopping for groceries...

A lady, with her kid, was in the counter struggling to pay for her stuff.

And seeing her have to put stuff back because she couldn't afford it was an incredibly difficult thing to watch.

It reminded me of my and my mom back when we didn't have anything...

The least I could do to help was to step in and pay for her groceries - which created a moment where we both broke down crying.

Because having been through that situation many times, experiencing my mom go through those same things...you gain an understanding of how difficult things can get.

So I just hope we're all reminded of the blessings that we have, no matter how small.

And for all of you that are in the struggle, know that I love you and I appreciate you.

You aren't alone in these difficult times.

- Dean Aguilar