When Ashley wanted dance lessons, a private instructor appeared. When she dreamed of Europe, plane tickets were booked without a second thought. For me, the lessons were different: money is hard-earned, independence is a virtue, and reliance is a weakness. From sixteen, I worked evening shifts at a diner, saving every dollar for tuition while Ashley never worried where her next dollar would come from. For years, I told myself this was their way of making me stronger. But it wasn’t a strategy; it was a choice, and it was never in my favor.

My undergraduate graduation was a blur of parental absence. They arrived late, distracted by a shopping trip for Ashley’s dance costume, and left before the ceremony even concluded. When I announced my acceptance into a competitive MBA program, my father’s only response was, “Good. But don’t expect us to pay for it.”