Parentification: You're Not the Only One

like supposed to be figuring out college applications and prom dates and all that but instead im here at like 2am trying to figure out how to stretch a hundred bucks for groceries to last us two… …

I have been cooking dinner every weeknight since I was TWELVE. …

My mom got the night shift at St. …

cause im a senior in high school right now applying to colleges and everything but also im the one who calls up the electric company when the bill is too high and sits on hold for an hour to argue… …

I’m thinking about the general store, the old one, before the Walmart came in and just swallowed everything up. …

I spent my whole senior year fixing things for her.

Drawing a blank? …

It is 2 AM and I’m still awake because my head is just spinning. …

You know that feeling when you’re the only thing keeping a roof from collapsing? …

Like, really look at your life and realize you're just a glorified chauffeur/nurse/ATM? …

I guess I should start by saying I'm only sixteen, but today after my shift at the site it felt like I was a hundred years old. …

Is anyone else out there still feeling that weird...

ing things for his three brothers while the mom is at the hosptal on the night shift.

Am I the only one who feels like they’re literally bleeding out just to keep everyone else upright?

I still have the internal timer set for 5 PM. …

I’m sitting on the edge of her bed again while the tea gets cold.

I was eleven years old sitting at the kitchen table with a stack of legal notices that would make a paralegal sweat, and honestly? …

I have been my sister’s bank for forty-two years. …

I spent thirteen hours yesterday performing what any objective observer would call a theatrical display of domestic martyrdom. …

Am I the only one who feels like they’re living with a stranger? …