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    19 Struggles Only First Generation Kids Really Know

    Kids of immigrants: unite!

    1. Seeing your friends be rude to their parents, while meanwhile knowing your own parents would kill you if you tried any of that.

    2. Being told to study hard and not be like “your American friends”.

    3. But then being called “so American” when you’ve done something wrong.

    4. Introducing your friends and S.O.’s to cuisine they may not be ready for.

    5. And enduring some classic lost in translation moments between them and your parents.

    6. Being strongly encouraged to find someone with a similar cultural background.

    7. Being asked by your friends to say words “in your language”.

    8. And then disappointing people when you don’t know that many.

    9. Not to mention being shamed by your family for not knowing your native tongue well enough.

    10. That constant struggle of being practically force-fed at the dinner table, followed by being told you've gained weight.

    "Why don't you eat more?"

    11. Bringing in school lunches that raised a lot of questions.

    12. And having to answer “where are you REALLY from?” way too frequently.

    Seriously -- think about the absurdity of that question.

    13. Being enormously, passive-aggressively guilt-tripped if you don’t call your grandparents regularly.

    14. Always being given that speech about your parents' immigration hardships everytime you complain too much.

    "Jake doesn't like me back."

    "Oh, really? Did I tell you about the time we were on welfare and all lived in a cramped one-bedroom apartment so you could have a future?"

    15. And feeling criticized for even tiny mistakes because you're expected to do better.

    There's always the pressure to accomplish even more than your parents because you were actually born here.

    16. Only being encouraged to pursue something lucrative or something you’re really, really, really good at.

    And not being given any extra points for getting into a top-level university or landing a dream job because that's already what you're supposed to be doing.

    17. Dealing with pretty brutally honest critiques from a tenderly young age.

    18. Learning to balance the two cultures you're a part of in sometimes clumsy ways.

    19. But in the end, having it all work out, because you're loving, wackadoo upbringing has made you the best person you could be.