My Life ..... part 2

Someone left a comment on the last post about there being lots of sad stories out there, and being careful not to let yours define your life.
I tell my story not as a way to garner sympathy or pity. I don't need either. I tell my story so that others who perhaps may be in similar circumstances may gain hope and strength, knowing that things can and do get better. No matter what a person lives through as a child or young adult, life is beautiful. You just have to want it bad enough.
I also tell my story that people might be made aware of what is out there, that parents might be watchful even of those closest to them so that they can have a better chance of protecting their children.
So...
We lived in the cabin off and on for eight years beginning in 1976. We were dirty and poor, not because of a lack of income, both my parents worked and my father made what was considered a great wage at that time. He just drank and partied the money away.
The first year in the cabin was more of an adventure than anything else. My brothers and I spent hours upon hours swimming in the pond in a clearing up the hill, and playing cowboys and indians through the forest. We built rickety forts, and played Tarzan, swinging on thick vines that hung from the trees. Our nearest neighbor was over half a mile away, so we had the run of the top of the hill.
There was also lots of work. Water had to be hauled daily from the spring, dead trees knocked down, cut up and chopped for the fire, and kindling gathered. And, animals had to be tended. At the cabin we had a bull and steer, twelve pigs, a hundred chickens, and dogs and cats that all needed fed and pens cleaned. The dogs and cats of course had the run of the place.
We were strong and healthy children. We literally never got sick. I believe that was because we spent most of our time outdoors, playing and working hard every day. Many people expressed envy at our simple lifestyle. But, underneath it all, our simple lifestyle hid a darker truth.