My dad had me when he was twenty years old, not quite "fresh" out of high school but still very young nonetheless. When I was five I moved in with my dad, my former stepmother, and their child. In the beginning, it was okay. I liked the two parent structure and watching my sister grow up. That was until the cracks in the foundation started showing. I was not allowed to talk to my mom, my stepmom treated my sister, her child, differently than me and eventually her and my dad started fighting. The fights used to be small, until they got ugly. Soon, after five years total, they divorced. The divorce was nasty, my former stepmom asked for an insurmountable amount of child support that left my dad with barely enough money to take care of me much less both of us. On top of that we weren't allowed to see my sister because of her mom despite the court rulings, this was a pretty hard time for my dad and myself. I was about ten years old and seeing my dad not eat so that I could or taking two buses to get groceries was hard on both of us even if I could not fully understand what was going on. Regardless, we made it work. My dad had to work while I walked to the bus stop so he would take his fifteen minute break at work to stay on the phone with me until I got on the bus, to make sure I got to school safely. Sometimes he had to work double shifts so I'd stay with my aunt or grandma and if they were not my dad made the hard decision to leave me home alone. That choice was rare, if anything I would stay at a friends house most of the time. This really took a toll on my dad, he dealt with a lot of stress and depression and I did not how to help him which in turn affected me as I wanted to be of some help to him but I did not know how to be helpful. My dad persevered though, without a woman in the household he learned how to do thick coily hair the best way he could, if I had any school trips or fees he found a way to pay for them no matter what, and mostly he loved me and my sister. When we did see my sister he still tried to take us places and make the most of our time together with the little money he did have. My dad eventually made another hard decision to leave me with my grandmother so that he could train for a new government job and make more money to support me. Not having my dad around was tough even though I love my grandmother. My dad eventually, after a few years, got engaged to someone he loves and just recently bought a house for all of us. Through all of this my dad taught me to keep going. No matter how hard it is, keep going. He also taught me to make the most of my situation through the small moments of fun we did have. He did it all and still works just as hard so we can have more of the things he could not give us earlier. With the future my dad set up for me I want to get my psychology degree and help other single parents, kids in rough spots, young adults, and more get access to affordable mental health care to save themselves the struggle of dealing with it on your own. I see myself hopefully with my own practice as a therapist helping those who cannot help themselves and make the brave decision to go to therapy. I want to thank my dad for pushing through and raising me so well.