When I was much younger I prided myself on having put myself through college and grad school, working part time, as a single parent with a bit of financial aid and scholarships thrown into the mix. I thought that if I did it, others could too.
Now as a much older, a little wiser, person, I realize that the same circumstances and events often affect people in different ways. Who knows why? I don't. And people are not always capable of overcoming obstacles, even though you would think from observing from your ivory tower than they SHOULD be able to pull themselves up.
Do we really know why some people don't succeed where others in similar circumstances do not? No, we don't. All we can do is speculate about their lives and the choices they made. And how arrogant is that? Assuming that we know what someone else's life is all about.