All White People are Rich

When I was in Haiti I thought everyone in America would be rich. The people in the orphanage told us that all white people were rich. All the adoptive parents sent their kids Christmas gifts and threw a party for us. This made us think our families must be very rich. I thought my adoptive parents would give me anything I wanted. When I came to America, my Mom was showing me around the house. I thought my parents were rich because I had a closet full of clothes and shoes. My parents had their own bedroom and a big kitchen table. We didn't have these things in Haiti.

When I lived with my parents in Haiti, I had about nine outfits. We sat on the ground to eat our meals. My family slept in one bedroom. I shared a bed with my parents. My sister had her own bed, and my brothers slept on the floor. When my cousins came over they slept on the floor too. The floor was dirt. Every night we smashed it down with our hands so it wouldn't be so bumpy. When it rained, all the rain came in our house and it was muddy. One night, in Haiti, it was raining into our house and our house was flooding. Everyone was leaving and my Dad asked my Brother where I was. I was still in the house! My Dad came and carried me out. There was a man standing in the street shooting a gun. He would go into people's houses and steal their things while they were trying to get away from the flooding. My Brother wanted to go after him, but my Dad wouldn't let him.

In Haiti, my family in America would be considered rich. In America, my family isn't as rich as I thought they would be. When I realized that my parents had to continue to pay for electricity and water and the house every month I realized how much money it cost to live. Now I know that's why my parents don't buy me everything I want.