Let me preface this by saying, forgive the formatting, I'm on mobile.
My father was a carpenter and construction worker. I routinely worked as his unpaid apprentice from age 7 to age 13. My labour included hauling lumber, operating power tools such as chop saws and nail guns, mixing and pouring cement, and carrying tools to and from workplaces.
At age 12 I began to work as a lumberjack, in addition to my construction and carpentry work, once again under the tutelage of my father.
After a series of injuries on the job, I was left with a twisted spine and early onset arthritis, as well as lung damage from inhalation of sawdust and the various other airborne particles that come with such a job, that left me extremely vulnerable to a case of double pneumonia that nearly killed me.
I stopped working with my father around the time I entered high school. My mother had gained custody of me, and I rarely saw my father after that, except for a few instances that I won't get into. Around the time I turned 16, my grandfather was getting too old to run his farm by himself, and so I worked as a farmhand for approximately 6 months, until another traumatic injury that I received while learning martial arts left me unable to walk without a cane.
And thus, I entered my adult life, unable to walk, unable to stand for more than 15 minutes without my back giving out, and miserably depressed. My mother put pressure on me to get a job, threatening to kick me out if I couldn't start contributing to the household. So I left home, and was homeless for the better part of 6 years.
This was not good for my health, as you can imagine. But eventually, a few years ago, I was able to find a home, and am now married to a wonderful wife, who works as an english teacher. But with the rapidly rising cost of living, energy and gas prices, I am left unable to help my wife pay for our home, for our food. I try to eke out a living through freelance artwork, but haven't found work in nearly a year.
I don't know what can be done at this point, or what I hope to accomplish by telling my story. I guess I just wanted to get it out. Thanks for taking the time to read this, if you got this far. I hope you have better luck with your lives than I did.