You Know You're from Ukraine When…

Do you have to be Ukrainian to obsessively reuse plastic bags, Octoberbird? Because if so, we're getting on a plane. –Sparkitors

Although I’m an immigrant with ten years' (as of June 9th!) experience living in the good old United States, I’ve never doubted that Ukraine is my true home country. This Eastern European country has a tumultuous yet totally fascinating history that dates back to the early Middle Ages. For anyone who suspects that they might have a Ukrainian gene hiding somewhere inside them, this is how you know for sure:

-You spend 22 hours a day explaining that it's  simply “Ukraine,” not “THE Ukraine.”

-Were you to learn (as I did), that your high school colors are blue and yellow, you would spend the other two hours a day jumping around with excitement.

-Your European History teacher asks you for clarification on your native land’s history.

-Your mom recycles plastic grocery bags for use as garbage bags.

-You celebrate Christmas Day on January 7th—and open your presents on January 6th, Christmas Eve!

-You wear your vyshyvanka (embroidered shirt) to school, and become Coco Chanel among your classmates.

-You’re a HUGE fan of the AC Milan Italian soccer club, just because Andriy Shevchenko, the most famous soccer player in Ukraine, plays there.

-You had a hard time getting used to the fact that Americans use the period for a decimal point—in Ukraine, they use the comma.

-What are pyrohy, you say? Only the most delicious dish on Earth!

-Going to your grandma’s village house in the summer to help her with her garden is as engaging for you as going to Six Flags is for everyone else in your class.

-You go to a family wedding and are astonished at the number of your cousins you swear you've never met.

-You’re horrified at the shallowness of any guy who says, “Hey, I thought all Ukrainian girls were supposed to be tall, blonde, and long-legged!”

-99.9% of the folk songs that you know start with the word “Oh,” as in, “Oh, the wild geese flew/Oh, they flew in rainy weather once upon a time…”

-You know that L’viv (my hometown) is the place to discover the ultimate cultural/architectural treasure chest.

-You’re immediately drawn to anything that mentions mulberries and nightingales—the national flower and bird, respectively.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go do some planning for that annual trip to Grandma’s village!

Does anyone else feel closer to their home country than the country they're living in now?

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