💔😢 33 YEARS OLD, SINGLE MOTHER IN DUBLIN. YESTERDAY I LEFT THE SUPERMARKET IN TEARS My name is Laura Jansen, I'm 33 years old, and I raised my 8-year-old son Lucas alone in Tallaght, Dublin. For those who don't live here — Dublin is shown in the media as a vibrant city of cozy pubs, coffee shops, and high tech salaries. But my reality is completely different: an alarm clock at six in the morning, endless waiting for the Luas and buses, and a sales assistant's salary in a clothing store on Grafton Street that vanishes before it even hits the account. On €1,980 a month in Dublin, you don't live — you just try to survive. Between rent that shot up to €1,350, school lunches for Lucas, electricity, heating, and €84 for a Leap Card, money evaporates in the very first days of the month. I had only €35 left on my card until the end of the month. Everything became unbearable two months ago when I received a registered letter from court: a debt notice from the bank for €7,200 that I took out to cover previous months' expenses. I lived in constant fear that my account would be frozen at any second. Last Tuesday, Lucas came home from school and showed me a flyer: — Mum, my classmates are joining swimming lessons. It's €150 including registration… can I go too? I looked into his eyes full of hope — and then remembered that I had transferred my last €180 that morning to pay off part of the debt. Remaining balance: €35. I patted his head and explained that this month it just wouldn't work. Lucas gave a sad smile and said: "Don't worry Mum, it's fine, I didn't even like swimming that much anyway." At eight years old, he was already trying to protect me from feeling bad. That moment broke my heart into a thousand pieces. The next day I went to the local supermarket to buy something for dinner. At the checkout, when the total came to €38, the card was declined: insufficient funds. I was short by just three euros, but the transaction didn't go through. People in li
