In the second chapter, Gigi’s family is affected by the sequestration. Since her uncle is the Pasha, all those directly related to him have to face consequences and some are even sent to internment camps. Gigi’s family has to give up all of their servants except for Madame Helen and the cook who refuse to leave. It is likely that Madame Helen, who has lost all of her wealth in the past, begged to stay because she had nowhere else to go since she isn’t as young as she used to be. She also has been taking care of children for quite some time. The family bank accounts were frozen and they have to slowly sell their stuff, but what’s interesting is that the family tries to keep this knowledge from their children. Gigi’s birthday comes and goes just as extravagant as ever. The only issue is that only her cousin attends even though she invited her entire class. As an adult, she realizes how much her parents gave up just for her to feel normal.
I can relate to Gigi because my junior year of high school my dad lost his job. I remember having to ask him for money for food at my Marching Band competition (as I always did) and after a few weeks he asked me what happened to the money he gave me. I told him that I had spent it on breakfast and dinner at the last two competitions and had given him what was left. He told me to use my own money (which I had already been doing) and that he didn’t have the money I had returned to him. I remember feeling frustrated because I didn’t have any money and he managed to give me another 10 dollars for the last competition. At the time, I had no idea that he was no longer employed and to this day I still feel terrible. My dad managed to hide his unemployment from us for 6 months before finally breaking down and telling me that I couldn’t march Winterguard that year because we couldn’t afford it. This just shows me how much he truly cared about keeping me and my siblings happy even if it meant sacrificing his own happiness.