Being an older grandkid in a big family can be pretty annoying. You are not part of the adults, but you’re also too old to hang out with the kids. You are always expected to be the responsible one, to babysit the little ones, but you never get anything in return. You are stuck between these two groups – the kids and the adults, but you don’t belong to either, and it usually means you get the short end of the stick.

One of the most frustrating things about being the older grandkid is that you’re always expected to ‘be the bigger man’, so to speak. If your younger cousin wants something from you, you should give it to them, because they’re younger. You don’t get a say, you just have to go with it and keep your mouth shut. This is the only way to ‘keep everyone happy’.

As you may notice from the bitterness in my words, I am familiar with these situations, which is why I felt for the 19-year-old who wrote the story below.