1. Begging your parents to hang with your friends as if you're asking for a student loan.

Me: "Mom can I go out with my friends next week?"

Mom: "For what? What time are you coming home? Who will you be with? You better not need money. School is more important you need to study."

2. ALWAYS being compared to your cousins.

Mom: "You see your cousin, so smart and beautiful, making her parents proud; you better do better than her so we can show off to everyone."

3. Anything LESS THAN AN A is a PROBLEM.

Me: "Dad I got the highest score in the class I got an 89 on this pharmacy test."

Dad: "What happened to 100? You need to be on top."

4. Be prepared for the life stories you've heard a billion times every time you say you're tired.

Dad: "You think I'm not tired? When I was your age ....."

Dad: "Why do you need money? I feed you. You have a roof over your head. Do you need anything else?"

6. Everyone is your aunt and uncle - don't question it.

7. "I'll send you back to Ethiopia."

I'm pretty sure I heard this last week.

8. If you're a girl, don't waste your time mentioning boys because your dad will bring up marriage before dating.

9. Attitudes? Get that out before you step inside the house.

Me: "Mom leave me alone, I'm annoyed."

Mom: "For what? Why do you have an attitude? Why are you giving me one?"

10. Sleepovers? HA.

What are those?

11. They're NEVER on time.

Me: "They said the party starts at 8."

Mom: "We're Ethiopian, that means 9:30."

12. Don't bother wasting your time pointing out their wrongs - you're wasting your time.

13. Your grandparents will be your ONLY savior in that household.

14. The oldest will always be blamed for the wrongs of the younger siblings.

Mom: "You're supposed to help give them proper advice but instead you give them this bullshit advice."

15. Don't think you'll avoid religion in that home.

Me: "Mom I'm the working the day of Eid, so I can go to Mosque just not be there for the party."

Mom: "You better ask for the day off because you're not showing up for work."

16. Variety of juice and soda in the fridge? People are coming over.

Mom: "We have people coming over, I just went shopping come help me put all this in the fridge."

17. Privacy?

You wish!

18. Questions at family gatherings just so they can gossip about you after:

Aunts: "Are you dating? We won't tell your parents."

Uncles: "How's school? Keeping up those numbers your dad brags about?"

19. When being lectured they blame the American culture for making you the way you are.

You'll never avoid this lecture.

Being 18 and almost 19, I realize how grateful I am to grow up in this household despite the fact that it was a struggle at some moments but it has it's highs. Thank you, mom and dad, for being the comically hard headed people that you are. Thanks for teaching me to have pride in being Ethiopian. Thank you for being you.