My husband and I were extremely poor. We never went on welfare, we just walked a lot before we could afford a car and we only spent money on necessities. We lived in a trailer for a while and couldn’t afford heat through the winter but we did without phone, cable. We listen to radio for entertainment and watch tv over airwaves. We ate lots of eggs to substitute for the meat we couldn’t afford to buy and warmed the house by boiling water to let the ice melt off the door so it would open. And one small heater to heat the bathroom when we showered and electric blanket to keep us warm at night.
There were many trials and struggles. But we found that nothing could break us so long as we had each others backs. Money makes life easier and it can make things difficult, but love makes struggles bearable. To know that someone always has your back through good times and bad times can give you unimaginable strength to grow and persevere. That and having a goal you both share helps.
We have been married for 32 year, actually have an ok savings, our children are grown and both have good jobs and and a college education , and we have more than we need. And we both feel that we could lose every possession tomorrow and it won’t kill us and we can pick ourselves up and build our lives again so long as we are together. We will find a way. But losing each other and or our children and we lose everything we value most. We wouldn’t know how to recover.