My parents never had much money, and they have been struggling financially for their (and my) entire life.

But besides that, I think I have some of the best parents around. It took me actually growing up to realize this, and there are a few things I think they could have done better, but I don't have many complaints.

I didn't have many restrictions, and could pretty much do what I want as long as it wasn't ridiculous. They weren't strict in that sense, but it allowed me to experiment so much more as a child than I think most people get to. Everything I ever worked towards or tried to do was encouraged by both of my parents, and if they had the money, they would always do everything they could to make my "dream" at the time a reality. This sense of being "mostly free," allowed me to develop as an individual at my own pace.

Religion was never brought up or talked about. No mention of God, no mention of other religions. With my religious views best being described as Agnostic, I feel like most of my beliefs are all... natural? I don't know how to word this exactly, but there's something satisfying knowing I was able to learn about the different religions and beliefs around the world from an outer perspective, without necessarily being told that any of them were correct. With my parents, it was more of a... "this is what's out there, feel free to ask questions." I can't thank my parents enough for this. So much of who I am is because of the way they handled this type of stuff.

My father would always fill my brain with information. He's the type of guy that would just read up about everything he ever found even remotely interesting. So, growing up, I found my brain filled with knowledge about stuff that wasn't really important ... but, when building relationships, I found it much easier to make conversation when I could pull out a discussion about something seemingly random that I happened to have a basic understanding of because of my father. This followed me until adulthood, and now I find myself reading up about a lot of things and expanding my knowledge, when I don't know if I would be inclined to do so otherwise.

My mother was the typical loving type, offering support and love for just about anything. If I ever was upset or going through a hard time, she would be there for me. If I messed up, she would help me through the aftermath. I've never been scared to tell my mother that I messed up. I can share anything with her, and now that I'm older, she's pretty much a best friend.

They did a lot of things right. Sure, they did some things wrong, but what parent doesn't. I was their third child, so they probably learned a lot from the other two. I think the approach they had with me was nearly perfect, and I truly feel like everything I'm interested in, everything I believe, and everything I do is all me. I wasn't forced into anything, I wasn't told to believe anything, and I was always encouraged to follow my dreams, no matter what they were.