The Hardest Part of Poverty

Extreme poverty is not just being broke. It is waking up already exhausted

because hunger destroys sleep. It is memorizing every public space that tolerates you

and every corner that will chase you out. It is becoming hyper aware of your appearance

because looking weak turns you into a perceived threat. It is swallowing insults silently

because defending yourself costs energy you cannot afford. Kindness that performs for audiences wounds

deeper than honest cruelty. Help wrapped in disgust and unsolicited advice humiliates

more than it saves. Hunger rewires your brain entirely. Dreams vanish. Morals fade.

Only the next few hours exist. People judge poor choices without seeing that when