Like most people, I abhorred huge family get togethers for Thanksgiving when I was younger. As a child, all that meant to me was the adults being loud, old people kissing my cheek, and food that didn't entice the picky eater I was. When I was a teenager, this mild discomfort became full out embarrassment because, let's be real, teenagers are moody brats. I would squirm and fidget, uncomfortable with all the Farsi and making small talk with family I rarely saw.

But hindsight always has a rose gold 20/20 filter. I can't wait for Thanksgiving now, or Christmas or Norouz or Fourth of July celebrations for that matter, because now I realize that my once embarrassingly loud and obnoxious family is actually one of the greatest things ever. It's taken me many years to realize that no one will ever love you like your family does. Friends come and go, coworkers change regularly; classmates move on, and professors are a dime a dozen. But your aunts and uncles and cousins and nieces and nephews will always stay by your side, whether you like it or not.

So it makes me sad when I see people who can't stand to be around their families; who try to avoid holidays as much as possible, who choose to travel elsewhere in lieu of spending even a single afternoon surrounded by family. I'm heartbroken for those who don't have dozens of cousins available at any given time, or who can't go bum away an entire afternoon at their aunt's house where they can eat good food and watch Netflix all day with their uncle. Because even though it's taken me about 22 years to figure it out, my big loud family is one of the best things in my life, and I wouldn't trade them for anything.