Just Scraping By in Appalachia

I am spending the week in my hometown in Southeastern Ohio on the edge of Appalachia. This area is the epitome of rural US poverty. As I drive through the town where I grew up, I see anew just what rural poverty looks like. I see the trailers that are rapidly deteriorating, the abandoned farms and the rusting vehicles. I also see signs of great hope as the moldy, dilapidated schools I attended have been replaced by beautiful, new buildings. As I take all of this in, I think about the ways in which my neighbors living paycheck to paycheck, day to day and meal to meal are surviving.