The Struggle Is Real.

       "The struggle is real."
       One of Harp's friends is on food stamps.
       Another was just evicted.
       A student of mine may be homeless by the end of August.
    
       None of this is shocking or solitary. These are struggles that have crossed my path regularly over the last two years. Not occasionally. Not "one kid in two years." Consistently. Regularly. Methodically. Routinely. Pick a word.

       I hear the phrase "the struggle is real" bandied about with sass and in reference to everything from paying attention to losing weight. But when I hear it, I think of all the kids in my periphery who have truly, legitimately struggled.
       And then I get depressed.
  
      Because I neither work in a "low income" school, nor do I live in a "low income" neighborhood. These are troubles that are supposed to plague other kids.  Not the ones I teach or who live nearby.

      I don't have any more to say about it, I suppose. I just wanted to get it off of my mind an onto a page.

      
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