I’m not sure how one starts a letter like this. This isn’t a position I ever thought I would be in. I have two amazing little kids. A perfect little girl who just celebrated her second birthday and a little boy who is 9 weeks old. My wife and I are very blessed in many ways. We were high school sweethearts. She owns an Etsy shop and I’m a writer. Struggling writer I guess you could say. Emphasis on struggling. Life has never been easy but over the last year it has been especially difficult. Our second car broke down in 2020 and we haven’t been able to get it repaired. This past week, our one remaining car started to give out. Every time we drive it, I hold my breath, terrified it’ll die on the side of the road with all of us in it. That sort of lingering stress seems to be the new normal. It all started two years ago when my daughter was born prematurely. My wife had a very difficult pregnancy but she powered through like superwoman. My daughter was born at 32 weeks, 4lbs, and had to spend a month in the NICU. The nurses were wonderful and I’m proud to say that today my daughter is a very healthy, strong, and adorable two-year-old. Because of lousy insurance, our hospital bills were in the six figures. Every month, as we slowly chipped away at them it seemed like something else would find a way of going wrong. Right when things started to turn around, Covid hit. My wife had just started a new business a few weeks before and we were forced to pull the plug on it almost immediately. Soon after, the writing job I had depended on to put food on the table for the next six months fell through because of production cuts. In the blink of an eye, there was no money coming in. The bills began piling up and for a little while there, it seemed everything that could possibly break did. The dryer, the car, the water heater, the dishwasher, my computer. There hasn’t been a single month in the last year and a half where I knew where the money for the following month’s rent and bills was going to come from. I wouldn’t wish this kind of stress on my worst enemy. Last night, as I rocked my daughter to sleep, I quietly came undone. The floodgates ripped open and there was no closing them. I cried like a baby while holding my first baby. I cried because I’m sad… because I’m frustrated… But mostly, because I’m scared. This is not how I saw my life going. I grew up on the poverty line, but I never thought I’d be back here. Not now. Not when I have a wonderful wife and two beautiful kids to provide for. I don’t believe in asking for more than you need and while I’d love to pay off our debt, that’s not what I’m asking for. What we need more than anything right now is just enough to get through the next month’s cycle of bills. $4,800. I am a firm believer that good news is always just around the corner and I have no doubt better days are ahead. I’m not sure how to end this so I’ll just say thank you. Thank you for reading this. I know it’s probably silly but writing this already feels like it helps. Even if only a little.