Growing up with split parents isn’t “cool” at all. Sure, you get two houses, double the presents on holidays, and in my case, even double the clothes. Along with all of that, you also get the broken home. Your routine of life is Mom’s this weekend, Dad’s next weekend. All of your friends get to do whatever they want, and you’re stuck saying, “Sorry, I’ll be at Dad’s house this weekend, I can’t hang out.” It’s going over to a friend’s house to see their happy family, and always wondering what it might be like.

Growing up, my Mom and I were best friends-- I am her only child. To watch a parent struggle is the saddest thing ever, because they hold it all in. One day, you slip and say the wrong thing, and the fight breaks. They feel guilty, they feel helpless. But, I’ll never forget one line my Mom always said to me growing up, “It’s me and you against the world, me and you against the world.” No matter how awful life may seem, even if your life isn’t perfect (whose life is anyway?), it’s definitely worth it.

All of the kids with their parents still together try to compare and give advice. But if your parents are together, do you really even understand? Nobody understands what it’s like to have to miss Christmas with one family one year, and Thanksgiving with the other family the next, unless they’ve really lived it. Nobody understands how to process that “Santa had to come early to the house this year,” unless they’ve really heard that.

Having to turn down your friends isn’t always easy, but in the end it’s worth it. If they’ve been your friends for quite a while, they’ll understand anyways. Sometimes having a broken family gives you the best of both worlds. You get to encounter experiences at one house, that the other house would never consider.

Life isn’t always easy with a broken family, but it makes you grow more. You learn to appreciate the time more. You value a relationship more. Two isn’t always better than one, but life isn’t always beautiful either.