When you grow up in a well-off household, it might be confusing to you why people ever live in poverty. You may not understand just all that people with limited means go through since you never lived it.

Being poor can be hard to explain for some. People who don’t quite understand might wonder why, even those who make little money, can’t just save a few bucks a week. But one person who grew up in poverty finally explained why getting out of the cycle is difficult in a way that makes sense.

In a recent Tumblr post, the poor person began with a story about his friend who wondered why he wasn’t able to save even just $5 a week. Couldn’t anyone do that?

“I kept trying to explain that when you are living paycheck to paycheck, there really is no saving money because most of your income is being spent on basic needs: food, shelter, clothing, transportation,” the person on Tumblr wrote.

Even if you ARE able to put away just a few bucks a week, that can be washed out in just one unexpected circumstance.

“I would manage to get a few hundred in my savings account, but then you get a flat tire, or you end up getting sick and missing a week of work, or you have an unexpected bill. And, that few hundred dollars suddenly disappears,” the poor person explained. “I tried to explain to him that when you’re poor, unanticipated expenses can very quickly and easily blow through what little you have in your savings account and put you back at square one.”

Another point the person made: When he did have money in the bank, he’d have to use it on a necessity, since he didn’t know when he’d ever have that again.

“Like, if I needed a new pair of jeans and I had an extra $30 that week, I would buy myself a new pair of jeans that week because I didn’t know when I would have an extra $20 or $30 to spend. So, he countered that with, ‘You don’t need to buy clothes. You could have put that $30 in your savings,’” he said.

Fair point? Not really. The poor person had responded, ‘Well, if it were socially acceptable to walk around without pants on, then maybe poor people could climb out of poverty, but until then, when your jeans have holes in them or don’t fit you anymore, you need to get some new ones.’

The Tumblr post really puts it all into perspective, including the sociological aspects of poverty. To read all this man has to say, check out the post here!

Did you or anyone you knew who grew up in poverty? What would you say to someone who didn’t quite understand?