“It Was A Real Eye-Opener”: 53 Times Privileged Kids Suddenly Realized How Spoiled They Were

Oh I’ve told this story before many, many years ago.

For my 16th birthday my parents gifted me a red convertible but I legit threw a fit over it because the car was red and not blue. They kept the car for themselves and got me a new one. Just a small amount of context to show how spoiled I was.

Years later I needed volunteer hours for various college applications, etc etc. There was an 8-week summer camp that was perfect. 8 weeks as a counselor where I didn’t really have to do anything? Sign me up.

This summer camp was hosted by Americorps. It served the under privileged in my area for free if the family couldn’t afford it or for something $25 a week if they could.

There was this kid. Lovely little thing but they refused to take off their shoes. Going to the pool for the day? They’d keep their shoes on. They were adamant about never taking off their shoes, almost combatant about it. We knew something was wrong then. When there was a quiet/nap time, I took the kid to the office of the person running the camp and just sat down to talk to them. We talked about a lot of stuff and then I was able to get them to open up about why they never took their shoes off.

Their shoes were 3 sizes too small. They took off their shoes and their socks were covered in old blood plus new blood. Their poor feet were wrecked from wearing these shoes for god knows how long. I grabbed a first aid kit then cleaned up his wounds the best I could and wrapped them in bandages. I threw his socks and shoes away.

On my lunch hour I sat in my car crying for what felt like hours. I got ittogether, went to a shoe store and bought them 3 pairs of shoes in 3 different sizes. One pair that fit them now and the other 2 as their feet grew.

It was such a harrowing, humbling moment. A huge wake up call. That camp taught me A LOT and I came away with a lot of stories much like that from many of the kids that attended the camp.

I spent 2 years as an Americorps, then joined their VISTA program for another year. I started volunteering to work with at risk kids. I became a ‘big sister’. I did everything I could to give back to my community.

It’s over 20 years later. I still volunteer and help whenever/however I can.

When I look back on myself from that time I can’t believe how entitled and spoiled I acted/was. It was a life changing experience. One that I will **always** be thankful for.

I wasn’t spoiled with money, but I didn’t realize how good my family was or at least didn’t realize that other families weren’t generous until my freshmen year of college. My car wouldn’t start and it was dinner time and then I had to do a 2 hr tutoring job. I called my dad and he agreed the car needed a battery. I told him I could walk to work and get a ride home and the n to the shop the following am to buy a new one.
When I got back to my dorm my dad and grandpa were there installing a new battery. They had to drive over an hr to do that each way after 7 pm. I was grateful of course but I wasn’t surprised because my family always did things like that. The other kids in the dorm just couldn’t believe it. Then I saw how great my life really was and how my parents had truly sacrificed for us as had my grandparents too.

For me, it was getting my first job in retail. I remember looking at a pair of shoes I wanted and realizing it would take me 3 full shifts of standing on my feet just to afford them. My parents used to just buy them for me without a word, and it hit me how much work I’d actually been 'skipping' my whole life.

When I was like 8, my family had to wait in a long line for something. I don't remember what for. I loudly asked my parents "Where is our line? This one is too long!"

Apparently I was so used to waiting in shorter VIP lines or skipping them entirely. Luckily my parents realized what I was growing into and stopped it before I got any worse.

Did a group "privilige" exercise where the professor states a true or false (do your parents own land, for instance) and if its true to you, you step forward. If false, step backward 


This was at a community College i was attending to supplement my transfer into a new uni. 


I was just.... meters in front of the group. It ripped the edge lord libertarian right out of me.

I’ve written about this before, I hope that’s allowed.

I’m from a third world country and when I was a kid, I can distinctly recall on the drive back home from dinner- we stopped at some traffic lights.

A beggar tapped on our drivers window, hoping for some change- even as a kid you learn to avert your gaze and it’s something you become sadly good at.

This time though I glanced up and we met eyes. I realised this beggar was just a kid, like me.

He my age, missing a hand and he was begging on the streets.

I started getting really upset and told mum to do something to help him and that it just wasn’t fair.

I don’t know what I expected- short of mum essentially kidnapping him hahaha.

Anyway, I continued to throw the biggest tantrum about how unfair it is until mum gave the boy all the cash she had in her wallet and we drove off.

I remember I had kept crying well after we had gotten home.

That was when mum explained the concept of privilege to me and the difference that made.

Not me, but I watched it happen in real time to my friend. 


We were driving to Canada because a beer I designed the lable for was having a big launch party and my husband and said friend came with to celebrate. We were crossing the border and the car in front of us was more bondo and ductape than car. 


Friend said out loud " JESUS, why would you drive that around instead of just buying a new one?"


And we were like...cars are expensive man lol. 


And he responded with "he can afford gas so he's got a job, he can absolutely buy something that isn't falling apart"


We asked him how much minimum wage was. The silence was deafening. He had no idea and "assumed" it was like $20+ an hr or something. 


I grew up under the poverty line and spent many memorable years food insecure. Took the rest of the trip to explain how expensive it is to be poor. He looked like he swallowed a box of gravel and apologized for being so ignorant.


 Poor guy was truely mortified that he had no idea that some people drive beaters because it's their only option and not because they are lazy or slobs 😬.

My daughter just had a revelation about her privilege…she just had foot surgery so I made her cereal, and she complained about the amount of milk I put in.  When she asked why I was always so skimpy with it, I told her that when I was growing up we had to conserve the milk because if we ran out too early we might spend a week or two using water or eating it dry instead.  Her eyes got so huge. 

On the other side, it’s weird when I realize how growing up poor is still affecting my behaviors.   The milk thing was something I didn’t realize until she asked. .

First time flying economy. I asked the flight attendant where the button was to make the seat recline all the way down. She just stared at me. My friend next to me whispered 'that's... that's not a thing in economy.' I was 19 and genuinely didn't know planes had different classes of service. I thought 'business class' was just a term for people traveling for work. The shame still haunts me.

It was when I asked a friend what his parents were getting him for his 'half-birthday' and he just stared at me like I had three heads. That was the moment I realized that getting a $200 gift every 6 months just for existing wasn't a universal human experience.

Getting my first job and seeing how much effort it takes just to earn what I used to take for granted...

I was 19 and my card got declined at a gas station. Called my dad expecting him to fix it like he always did. He just said "yeah, that happens when you spend more than you have" and hung up. I sat in that parking lot for probably ten minutes before I understood what just happened.

Talking to customers where their utilities are getting cut off every other month makes me realize just having power and food in the fridge is a blessing even if you did have a bad childhood.

It's not that great of a story but when I was growing up my parents could afford for me to play any sport, instrument, or whatever other hobby I'd like. When I was around 12 I was listening to a friend say she was deciding between volleyball and soccer. I was like, why don't you do both? And she said "Because I can't afford it" in a way that she was irritated with my obliviousness. That little exchange truly changed my perspective and made me realize not only that I had the privilege of my parents being able to give me so much, but that other people could see what I had and know they didn't. It made me feel so bad. Up until that the point it just felt like I was like everyone else and vice versa, but this interaction made me forever sensitive to and aware of financial privileges, wealth divides, so on.

When I went to University. Suddenly I realized that not everyone got their own car at 18 and went on vacations twice a year. Almost everyone had either taken out student loans or had to work part time. It was a real eye opener.

First day of classes at college. Woke up late, sprinted to class, got back to my dorm and… realized it was just how I left it. Bed unmade, clothes all over the floor, etc. And then I realized how unaware I was of my maid cleaning up after every single thing I did every minute of every day. 

I’ve since been humbled; family made some poor financial decisions, lost the safety net I didn’t realize I relied on so much, and I have learned the value of work. But that memory still stings with shame when I think of it. .

When I went to sleepovers at friends houses and realized that while they *did* have food on the tables every night. Their parents didn't eat every night🙃. I knew we weren't rich but I realized quite quickly that having 2 living rooms and pet birds and individual bedrooms for all 3 kids was firmly middle class luxuries that a lot of kids don't get.

My parents always said we were poor. We ate out sometimes and had a house and car and decent clothes and money to spend for movies.

I went to a friends place and she apologized for not feeding me because they were running out of bread till next payday.

I wasn't super spoiled, but certainly didn't grow up desperate.
My friend brough over his tent that he got for his birthday and my dog ruined it.
He was very upset, and I didn't understand why.. "Your parents can just get you a new one, what's the big deal?" was my thought.

Then I went to his house shortly after and for our lunch we split 1 can of tuna fish and a lot of mayo on thin white bread between 6 people.

That's when I realized why I had a Super-Goose and he had a 4th time handed down thrift store Huffy.

Probably not what you were looking for, but when I read someone’s confession of hating girls who had dads… I realized I was lucky, because not only did I have a dad, but he went out of his way to make sure I woke up with breakfast every morning before school.