by Danie Russell

Created on: May 11, 2011

Jaylas life had never been something to brag about on a scale of one to ten Jayla was a negative ten. Her family was poor and lived in a box more or less, alright it wasn’t a cardboard box but as far as homes go it may as well have been a box. The roof always leaked and had caved-in in many areas, in the winter the house was like the North Pole and would leave you for your death if you didn’t bundle up like the Eskimos.

Just the same in the summer it was hotter then what she imagined hell to be. In her home she was the maid, the parent, the child, the student, the teacher and the worker. Jayla lived with her “turn a cheek” mother and “alcoholic coke-head” father. She also had six other siblings all of which she cared for since she was the oldest though Jayla was only fifteen she had been playing house from the time she could walk and talk.

Jayla loved her brothers and sisters but hated that she had to care for everyone, sometimes all she wanted was to disappear. She hated that the only way to keep the family going was if she was the parent. Jayla had tried many times to stop being the house work horse but things like that only lead to Jayla being beat with every object in arms reach, she preferred the work to being knocked around. Not to mention the kids would be left for dead without her.

Jaylas days were very routine she woke early to fix breakfast for everyone, she then got all the children ready for school and made sure each one made it there with food in their belly’s and clean faces. After rushing them off to classes she runs off to work, where she spends miserable hours on the south-side selling herself for as much as she can. Jayla would do anything to keep her family feed, in clothes and out of the foster care system.

After a few hours of leg slinging with the girls she picks the kids up from school where they then head to the park to play and study while Jayla works a little more. In the park Jayla hustles selling every drug you could imagine all while helping the kids with homework and lifes problems. By the time she gets the kids home, dinner cooked, everyone washed and to bed Jayla is far pasted tired. Sadly her night is nowhere close to an end since she still has to study for her G.E.D and clean herself up.

This was Jaylas life day in and day out; she was a fifteen year old whose life had worn her to look more in the thirties. At this point she was worn down and hoping she would just die early so she could

• 1
• 2
• 3
• Next Page >>