From Bad to Worse

For many of us welfare is something of a burden, something that most think is taken advantage of and used to substitute work and earning a living. From a distance this could be true in a lot of cases, and indeed many do use it for that purpose. But there are cases where it is needed, and the last hope for many families, especially in these times of financial downturns. Personal experience finds me in that situation now, due to recurring problems with my back. I can no longer work and have been forced to turn to the welfare system to supplement my wife's part time income while we sort out the mess we find ourselves in.

But this is no easy task, and one would think with the government assisting it should be an easy problem to correct. Hardly, and exactly the opposite. The welfare system is not designed to replace a lost income no matter what the reason or circumstance is. And any income brought in to the house is deducted $ for $ off of whatever amount the recipient is entitled to. Which means, if you work they take off any money you bring in off what they give you. They do not replace the money you have lost. So, that means as we try to pull ourselves out of this mess we are only getting deeper and deeper in debt and now on the brink of bankruptcy.

I know that many people have had to do that, and that today many more are going through very similar things as we are. But that doesn't make it any easier to deal with. My wife and I have 5 children, and two of them are under 4. We have been faced with watering down their milk to try and make it last, and let me tell you as a father nothing hurts more, than knowing you are unable to provide for your family better than that. We are trying to get in to emergency housing before the bank forecloses on our house and forces into something even worse than we can imagine, but we are not getting much help from anyone, or any agency. This has been a big wakeup call to me. I thought the welfare system and social programs in Canada were the best in the world, but it is hard to imagine any place having a worse system than this one.

A major part of the problem is living in a rural area and my inablility to drive due to the pain medication. Which means I can't even look for work without driving, and therefore risking my life and others by being on the road impaired on narcotic pain killers. So, not a good plan. Hopefully we will get into housing in the city ASAP so I can use public transit and get back to work. Wish me luck, I'll keep you posted.