For the First Time in 3 Years…

We’re sleeping in a space that’s comfortable

Where the air isn’t freezing constantly (because of an abuser)

Nor are we frying because of a lack of an AC during a heat wave like we were earlier this summer

For the first time in 3 years, we’re going out because we WANT to

Not because we’re trying to warm up

Or because we’re trying to get away from toxic people

For the first time in 3 years, we’re not being grilled as we leave about where we’re going or where we’ve been

For the first time in 3 years, we don’t have to worry about being eavesdropped on

For the first time in 3 years, we don’t have to walk on eggshells to avoid having our activities used against us

For the first time in a year, we have access to a workable kitchen and can actually make meals again

For the first time in a year, we’re no longer having just sandwiches for dinner because of having access to a clean kitchen and clean cooking equipment

For the first time in a year, we have access to a clean floor so my son can actually play with toys

For the first time in a year, we have access to a clean living room that we can sit and enjoy the company of others

Where my son can also play without worrying about a dirty floor

For the first time in a year, we’re now sleeping through the night without being woken up by screaming matches from other individuals who are intoxicated

For the first time in a year, we don’t have to worry about being woken up in the middle of the night by loud gong like sounds (which were made by intoxicated individuals hitting the washer and dryer)

For the first time in a year, we can now leave our food in the house without worrying about it being stolen by others

Which means our car is no longer being used as portable storage for food

For the first time in a year, my son’s bike and scooter can be left in the backyard without being vandalized or broken by an intoxicated individual

For the first time…

We can begin living again because someone else isn’t out to destroy

For it took several years to get out of a mess that someone else started but we were expected to solve immediately

Because it ‘shouldn’t be that hard’ to find something, despite the country being in an affordable housing crisis for individuals and families (like ours) who don’t necessarily have the means to move into the first ‘nice place’ we find

For it’s easy to judge and provide ‘advice’ from the outside

But once you’re thrust into a world where you’re constantly living in survival mode, getting out takes more than just ‘do it’