Australia’s Jayden Clark has had a fascinating ‘story time’ about what it was like ‘growing up after winning the lottery’.
We often hear about ex-winners who have squandered it all, or lost their friends, but it’s rare to hear exactly how they talk to their kids about the news and how it affects their childhood and future.
Clark explains what it was like for him, being from a “small town” like Adelaide – and it’s eye-opening.
“Growing Up After Winning the Lottery”
“Today I will make a story about how we won the lottery. I had obvious reasons to never talk about it because growing up, whenever anyone knew about it, they obviously had crazy perceptions about us right away,” Clark begins on his now-viral TikTok.
He continues, “I grew up in Adelaide, South Australia, with a sister, older brother and mum and dad. Very normal, and definitely more of a lower class income [bracket].
Clark describes the family as living “paycheck to paycheck” and even sometimes struggling to keep their house. Their fortunes changed when Jayden’s father, who he calls “a bit of a gambler,” bought a Lotto ticket using the same numbers he always did.
“Overnight, we went from very poor to very millionaires.
“Life changed from there. Growing up, I was so young, I didn’t understand the lottery or money… and how unique it was to happen to us.
“Only later did it make more sense to me why life was so different.”
“They showed us a giant check”
Clark shares a hilarious anecdote about his mom announcing a “big surprise” coming home from school one day, and he and his sister thought she was pregnant.
Not enough.
“Mom and Dad took the three of us kids into a room and literally just showed us a giant check.”
Although he didn’t realize the extent to which such a large sum would change their lives, Clark recalls that his parents were initially “paranoid” about their privacy, in terms of their children’s safety.
They also had “two weeks off from school to plan how to make a living”, as his parents had no models for money.
Their careful consideration — which Clark attributes largely to his mother — has literally paid off. Clark says that even a decade later, they’re still “comfortable.”
“It had implications for us children”
Clark admits that in hindsight, he can see how the win affected him and his siblings.
“You have this weird mentality of work and value for money… it never felt natural. I wanted to share my story, but also [I felt] Embarrassed by it… we didn’t deserve it, because we didn’t work hard for it.”
He describes living in a nice house, on a street with doctors, but still feeling like they were the “Bogan Lottery Family”.
He adds, “We would feel out of place between the two realities…we were made to feel that there was nothing to be proud of.”
It wasn’t until he later moved to Los Angeles, where people had big “crazy” lives, that he finally felt accepted. This point was discussed in the comments section of his clip, with some talking about the ‘Tall Poppy Syndrome’ that exists in Australia.
Clark recalls that his parents were very generous with family and friends; principles that have stuck with him because, in a way, “we felt guilty that we were so lucky.”
He describes the feeling as “impostor syndrome” in the comments and wanted to connect with people who have experienced the same.
But ultimately, he is grateful for the experience and embraces his destiny and freedoms.
“We have so many crazy stories — we’re this small-town family with no money who then takes limos to the airport for an interstate trip.”
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Image Source : nypost.com