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Fortunate to be a Texan

By Virginia Castillo

Ever stop to wonder how life in Texas is way different than life in Mexico? Well, there is a huge difference: Texas offers a lot of programs to help the needy. This is something Mexico does not offer, making life harder for the needy.

If you ever go to Mexico, you will be shocked to see how many men, women, and children are out in the middle of traffic, asking for some spare change. They have their reasons. They are either hungry or they need the money to feed their kids and pay their bills in order to survive.

You might be thinking, well, why not get a job? Maybe they do have a job, but do not make enough to support their big families. In Mexico, if you have what you call a good job, you make about $100 to $125 a week. If you do not have a good job, you make about $45 to $60 a week. Now think about it. How much could you buy with that?

Most of the families in Mexico are big - maybe six to seven or more. Why? Because Mexico does not have programs, like in Texas, that offer free birth control for women who are poor. With the little money they make, they cannot afford birth control pills.

Texas has a lot of benefits, such as programs to help pay bills, donations for food, and also help with medical bills or transportation. Now think about how many times you have seen somebody in Texas, in the middle of traffic, asking for a few coins to survive.

We need to know how lucky we are to have a decent meal every day, enough clothes, and more than one pair of shoes. Sometimes we have more than what we really need. Just think about when we go shopping. Do we buy something because we really need it, or because we just want it?

I think we are all so lucky to be in Texas, the state where we know we have a better life and we are able to survive without going through so much trouble.

Virginia Castillo of Avery, Texas, is a freshman criminal justice major at Paris Junior College.

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