His house boasted multiple entertaining areas, two living rooms, at least three toilets and a bedroom per person, plus spare ones for guests. I settled into the lavish eight-seater couch in the living room with the TV, but my friend casually ushered me to yet another room: his family’s cinema. He clicked from the Disney Channel to his DVD set-up and while he watched Harry Potter, I felt his semi-mansion closing in on me. Mum would pack these boxes to the brim with milk powder and old shoes. She’d send non-perishables in bulk and anything we didn’t need went to her siblings and their families. The bottom line is: No one should be going through this struggle. Capitalism continues to run rampant and the rising cost of living will hit some families a lot harder than others. Centrelink was the allowance my parents could never provide. I’ve been working and building my savings since I was 15, but even then, it won’t compare to the privileged few with financial safety nets. I don’t have a trust fund to fall back on, there’s no generational wealth and my sixty-something-year-old parents still have their own debts to pay off. I’m not here to romanticise another child-of-immigrant story — my family endured a lot. Even now as an adult with savings, I’ll always carry some form of financial trauma with me. I second-guess all big purchases and buy things based on price over longevity or investment. This is my truth and not everyone will relate to it. However, I will always be grateful for everything my parents did for me and will remember a childhood rich with hearty meals, Tagalog lullabies and a critical appreciation for life that (thankfully) doesn’t cost a thing.
