The Difference Between Eating and Going Without
2025-11-12
They were called food stamps when I was a child: a booklet that had multi-colored pages of different dollar values.
Many times as a foster child, I went to bed hungry. I remember that feeling clearly, and I also remember how food stamps often meant the difference between eating and going without.
Now they’re called Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. The name changed, but the purpose stayed the same: helping families survive when money runs out before the month does.
As a child, I didn’t think about politics or budgets. I only knew that those little colorful paper slips meant we might have cereal again, or that I wouldn’t get yelled at for “eating so much“.
Now, as an adult, I think about what it means to grow up in a system where food insecurity is normal. I think about all the kids who still wait for dinner that never comes and somehow, we accept that.
Food stamps didn’t erase those hardships, but looking back they gave me a chance to make it through another day, another month. And sometimes, that’s all a child needs. A chance to see another day without worry.