A Tumblr user has touched thousands of people with her patient explanation of just why it is so hard for poor people to lift themselves out of poverty.

The 27-year-old US-based woman, who blogs under the Tumblr name 'rroja & ribbons' recounted a conversation she had with a friend who just could not wrap his head around how difficult — and sometimes impossible — it is to save money when you're living paycheck to paycheck.

Her thoughtful post has resonated with over 140,700 people on the site since it was first published in 2017.

Listen up: A Tumblr user has touched thousands of people with her patient explanation of just why it is so hard for poor people to lift themselves out of poverty (stock image)

'I tried to explain to a friend of mine who has never ever been poor in his life why it is that poverty is a cycle, and why it’s so difficult to escape poverty,' the user began.

She recalled her friend insisting, as if it were incredibly simple, 'Just save money.'

'I kept trying to explain that when you are living paycheck to paycheck, there really is no saving money because most of your income is being spent on basic needs: food, shelter, clothing, transportation,' she wrote.

Then, her friend suggested that she save just $5 every week.

'Well, a lot of poor people do try to save,' she explained. 'I would manage to get a few hundred in my savings account, but then you get a flat tire, or you end up getting sick and missing a week of work, or you have an unexpected bill.

'And that few hundred dollars suddenly disappears.

When you are living paycheck to paycheck, there really is no saving money because most of your income is being spent on basic needs

'I tried to explain to him that when you're poor, unanticipated expenses can very quickly and easily blow through what little you have in your savings account and put you back at square one,' she wrote.

Sometimes, she went on, something that seems unnecessary to one person — perhaps because he or she has a lot of it — is totally necessary to someone else.

'I also tried to explain that when you are that poor, you need to make purchases while you have the money.

'Like, if I needed a new pair of jeans and I had an extra $30 that week, I would buy myself a new pair of jeans that week, because I didn't know when I would have an extra $20 or $30 to spend.'

Her friend didn't understand that either, seemingly failing to comprehend that someone would buy new jeans because they literally have none to wear, not because he or she would like a new style.

He countered with, 'You don’t need to buy clothes. You could have put that $30 in your savings.'

She responded: 'Well, if it were socially acceptable to walk around without pants on, then maybe poor people could climb out of poverty, but until then, when your jeans have holes in them, or don't fit you anymore, you need to get some new ones.'

Finally, she said, it clicked with him — a little.

'So, I went on to talk about the sociological aspects of poverty, like how growing up poor, or growing up as part of a marginalized demographic, pushes your starting block 100 feet behind your peers. How our educational systems are set up to fail impoverished children.

'The light bulb flickered, but never fully turned on,' she said.

'I never understood how it was so difficult to see the realities of poverty. To me, it is sort of common sense.

'And what is irksome is that poverty doesn't always present itself as an old beat up car, and falling-apart sneakers.

'People who grow up middle class and financially secure seem to think that poverty looks a lot like dirty children with dirty clothes, and no shoes. But, it doesn't. It can be that, but it's often not.'

POVERTY IN THE US According to the most recent data from the US Census Bureau, the US poverty rate in 2017 was 12.3 per cent of the population — or 39.7 million people. This is determined by whether a family or individual meets the 'poverty threshold,' based on family size. The poverty threshold is the the minimum amount a family needs to meet basic needs. For example, the 2017 poverty threshold for a family of four with two parents and two children was $24,858. If a family of that size has a household income of less than $24,858, they are considered to not have enough to meet their basic needs and are hence categorized as living below the poverty line. Advertisement

The Tumblr user painted a different picture of poverty. She grew up in the suburbs and went to Catholic school. But due in part to her medical issues, her family was 'very poor.'

Her mother worked two to three jobs, and her parents had to take out loans for her school tuition. Her grandparents paid for some it, even though they too had little to spare.

'My parents sometimes struggled to put food on the table,' she said, adding that she's been on food stamps.

Her entire life, her clothes and shoes were always hand-me-downs that were dirty and falling apart. Her toys were all second-hand as well.

She was just the youngest in a long cycle of poverty: her parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents were all poor.

She has continued to be poor as an adult due to her health issues, which have led her to amass thousands of dollars in medical debt.

'I work a job that doesn’t use my degree at all because I can work part time and still get benefits, and because I know I won’t get fired if I need to take extended absences due to my health,' she said.

'That idea we have about what poverty is supposed to look like is a big reason why people in the middle class are so content with cutting safety net programs, even though they are one medical problem, one car accident, or one lay-off away from complete financial ruin.

'What does poverty look like, then?' she concluded. 'How do you “just save money,” then?'

The post has continued to get attention since it was first shared two years ago. Last month, screengrabs tweeted by an Indonesian reader were liked 1,300 times.