"Thought We Were Dirt Poor": People Reveal The Moment It Hit Them They Were Actually Rich

Bored Panda reached out to a person who grew up with wealthy parents as shared on this post in response to the AITA thread. In an honest interview, the Redditor who wished to stay anonymous told us that she definitely recognizes her privilege of growing up wealthy.

“I'd also say recognizing my privilege is one of the most critical aspects of my ability to use it well. I think some people get hung up on the word ‘privilege’ and fear it minimizes their own struggles,” the person explained. She added that her view of privilege is that it isn't about what she had to go through; “it's about what I didn't have to go through.”

Growing up rich didn't mean it was all handed easily to the Redditor. “I was a hard worker. I got my first job at 14 and even back then, my parents required me to cover the costs of all clothing, accessories, and entertainment,” she recounted.

She was also second in her class. “I got a scholarship that covered the entirety of my undergraduate tuition and gave me some discretional funds each semester as well. I worked three part-time jobs to earn additional income and gain work experience. (As an aside, one of those jobs was one that I got largely due to the connections I had, as it was in a physician's private practice and I attended the same private school as his son.)”

Having said that, the Redditor assured that she has always had a safety net. “I was on my parents' insurance all throughout young adulthood, so I always had the benefit of good healthcare, routine dental appointments, and eye exams.”

Moreover, her expensive contact lenses and glasses “(which cost several hundred dollars, even many years ago)” were covered by her parents’ insurance or put on their credit card. “When my dentist discovered a small cavity, I was able to have it taken care of immediately, before it worsened and became a much more painful issue requiring a much more expensive procedure.”

“My parents didn't believe in buying their kids their own cars, but they did purchase a total of four vehicles for us all to share. All the cars were clean, reliable, and well-maintained, so there was never any concern about how or if we would be able to make it to class or work,” the Redditor told us. What’s more, any mechanical issues were dealt with promptly as well, “which were additional costs absorbed by my parents that my siblings and I never had to concern ourselves with,” she said.

However, the woman said it wasn't so for some of her classmates. “I still remember one who shared her tip for what she did when funds were low and she didn't have much money for food: spending what she did have on a jar of generic peanut butter, as she found that just a spoonful assuaged the pangs of hunger for her.”

While the Redditor assured us that she worked hard, she said that the payoff for that work was amplified by the resources provided by her parents.

“I love working out, so I'll use a running metaphor. Obtaining an education and growing a career was like running a marathon. Because of my parents, I was well-trained, ran on a freshly paved street, wore the best quality shoes, and enjoyed the benefit of water stations along the way,” the woman told us.

“There were some others I knew who - to stick with this same metaphor - ran the same distance, but on a gravel path with potholes and rocky ground. They were barefoot and no one gave them any water along the way. And maybe a polar bear was chasing them. Some of them got mauled by the polar bear and when others stepped in to try to help, there were those who suggested people who got mauled by polar bears were just slow, lazy runners. I never had to worry about being chased by a polar bear at all.”

So while the woman was diligent and industrious, she never had to worry about setbacks in the same capacity that many others did. “I was able to build on what was already established by my parents and their parents before them, and each generation in my family has grown successively wealthier as a result,” she said.

The woman said she hopes she is using that well. “I have seen enough to know I had many advantages others didn't and my goal is to invest what I have in my local community. The more I have, the more I consider it a reasonability to use my assets and abilities in a way that helps others.”