Most of us live our lives without having to worry about being homeless. But for the ones who do, the experience is distraught. Anyone can end up without a roof over their head, as well. Be it because of finances or just getting kicked out, we never know what life might throw our way. But being homeless does not mean we give up.
Take this story of one Chris Atoki. Saying his life was hard would be an understatement. Chris, in a thread on Twitter, explained that when he was 18 or 19, he was working full time. It was a simple laborer’s job at a warehouse, but he had to do it. He did it because he had to pay for the college that he attended full time.
But eventually, his life took a turn for the worse. He lost his job and was kicked out by his mother. It wasn’t until later that he eventually managed to get off the streets, get his own beautiful house, and turn his life around. This is his story.
How Did Chris Become Homeless?
So, it all started with trouble at his job. Apart from paying for his tuition, Chris also had a troublesome family situation: every other week, he had to give his mother a weeks’ worth of earnings. Needless to say, with all the things he was juggling, he had a hectic life:
But then, there was troubling news. His job manager said that some people have to get their hours reduced. Because Chris was still a student, the manager chose him as one. At the time, Chris thought that it wasn’t terrible. He would get more time to sleep, and he was still making enough to pay his mother.
However, it was too good to be true. Two weeks afterward, he got fired for “not working enough hours”. He was stunned and confused because he didn’t reduce his hours on his own. Regardless, Chris’ situation worsened, to a point where he no longer had a place to sleep in:
It was November when he was kicked out of the house. Additionally, his old car broke down for good. He tried to find shelter at first at his grandmother’s. Then, at the dormitory of his girlfriend. But her father found out, and that was the end of that stay. He had nowhere other than his car to sleep in for the night. At that point, he realized just how bad he had it:
However, Chris Did Not Give Up
That night, he could not sleep. Instead, he thought of every person in his life, and everything he did. He was almost convinced that all this happened because his life did not matter to anyone. However, Chris had an epiphany just as he was making up his mind to end everything:
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After that, it was just struggles, struggles, and more struggles. But he kept trying. First off, he visited the library and applied for every job he could find, be it a meat packer or a door-to-door salesman for mattresses. The odd jobs got him enough money to buy another car on loan. However, he had to drive about 400 miles daily. It was becoming too tiring. So he applied at Mattress Firm.
He got the job. He had a stable $30k annual salary. Things were better but still quite poor. He was still homeless. So, he would shower at a gym and go to work. At times, he would sleep in the store. But after getting almost caught once, he found a room for $550 per month.
Read: This Rwandan With No Education Built His Own Electric Power Plant
How He Eventually Stopped Being Homeless
But he wasn’t happy there. The next step was to return to school:
However, Lambda had no part-timing options. Full-time would be impossible for Chris who was already working full-time. So he directly wrote to Austen Allred, the CEO of Lambda School. And, surprisingly, he replied. The ensuing conversation convinced him to keep studying regardless of the difficulty.
He also had one more reason, at the time. He promised to be a good father to his newborn son. Chris completed his schooling and went on to be an assistant to a teacher. He wanted to help others the same way he was helped:
Eventually, he got a tech job at Comcast in Philadelphia [1]. He now owns a house he can be proud of. The moral of the story is amazingly put by the man himself:
So, if you think being homeless is the lowest point in life, then think again. As Chris put it, the only one who can make your life better is yourself. So, we owe it to ourselves to keep trying to make a better life.
Keep Reading: Man Buys The Bank That Refused Him A Loan When He Was Broke 18 Years Ago
Sources
- “24-year-old New Jersey native, Lambda School alum shares journey from homelessness to homeowner.” 6ABC. Eric Moody. July 9, 2020.
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