Paying the Bills

After my 6 year-old sister had her accident many, many years ago, she needed lots of medical care. With a tree branch puncturing your brain, many physical and mental things go wrong. It was endless trips to the doctor, stays in the hospital, and always new tests to try to find answers. These things cost money, so we went from quite comfortable to pinching pennies. Insurance didn't cover all the costs, and my parents were determined that no portion of any bill went unpaid.

I was 8 when the accident happened and entered my early teens during Suzie's medical parade. How I longed for all the clothes, accessories and lessons that my friends were enjoying at that age. There was money for basic school clothes and shoes. I, however, longed for designer shirts and endless shoes and senselessly spending money at the mall and piano lessons and family vacations at the beach.

At 16, I went to work. It was a part-time job that provided the long lusted for lucre to buy clothes and purses and shoes and jewelry. Being on a first name basis with the clerks at a local ladies store was a delight. My junior and senior years at high school were blissful from the monetary fruits of my part-time and summer labors.

High school graduation came, and the prospect of education and a future in fashion design was within my reach. Suzie's health had stabilized from a daily cocktail of meds, so life was less financially pinched. Home routine had shifted when another sister was born when I was 12. She was like a pet to me and my high school friends.

Then life blew us all off course when my father died unexpectedly at age 46. A massive heart attack at work and he was gone in minutes. With all of Suzie's medical bills, there was no big bank account or retirement fund, just a few thousand dollars in life insurance. I was 18 and went to work. The family needed the money.