Showing up to school 20 minutes late with bags under my eyes and coffee in-hand, I offered a superficial apology and explained to my teacher that I “slept through my alarm again”. I refused to tell him the real reason I was late. Yet every part of me wanted him to understand that I went to school for seven hours the previous day, worked for six hours that same night, and stayed up hours before the sun was to rise again finishing homework. Then I woke up early the following morning to wake up my mother and ensure she got to her job on time. Being the oldest sibling at home, I took it upon myself to make sure my mom didn’t lose her job-again.
I relived this situation throughout most of my sophomore and junior year. This year, however, I am working