Not Poor Anymore

Over the past few months I have had to deal with a lot. There has been a fair amount of pain and a good deal of grief. There has also been a lot of paperwork, phone calls, bill paying, packing and moving. But there has also been an up side. That 'up side' is that I am not poor anymore. Last summer I was poised to work as hard as I could at as many jobs as I could in an all-out effort to make as much money as possible. I would pay Bill, pay my expenses, and keep my credit cards at bay by making minimum monthly payments. It was a treading-water lifestyle. I didn't know how long I was going to be able to keep it going, or how long it would last, but it was the plan I had and knew I had to make work. To make money I would substitute as many days as I could get hired, I would take at least two tutoring students every day after school, and I would rent rooms to students through the student housing office. In a perfect world that and my retirement money would keep me afloat. The plan was rife with glitches. What if I got ill and couldn't work for a week or two? What if my jury duty netted me a trial that went weeks? It was a plan that would only work if nothing went wrong. There was no place for car repairs or replacing the furnace if it broke. It was so fortunate for me that Bill passed when he did. That particular kind of fortune increased when my dad passed because then I also received an inheritance. Now I don't have to worry about making every penny I possibly can. I don't have to worry about the loss of money if I should get sick. I don't have to scramble for sub jobs and take days at schools or in positions I don't want. But most importantly, I don't have to worry about whether or not I can make my monthly financial obligations because the truth is that it was going to be tricky to do in the first place. I am able to live well within my means, am slamming down the credit cards and can sleep in occasionally. I am not poor anymore, and I like it that way.