The cure is to wear a cornicello . This is not a small husk of corn or some type of musical instrument, but a pendant in the shape of a squiggly horn. This special piece of Italian magic is not only a cure, but it also has preventative properties, like taking heartburn pills before eating a bowl of spaghetti. For some reason Italians have all developed this idea that no matter how good life can be, something bad is coming. And for that, we prescribe cornicello. Frank - ie’s father would bet his life on it that giving the other teams the evil eye while wearing his cornicello is the main reason why Frankie won the second-grade basketball championship. Yet, despite being the child of Italian immigrants, Frankie couldn’t help but to call it bullshit. 1 Frankie was an above average teenage girl. She excelled in school while managing to be the captain of every sports team she graced her presence with. Though she used to be enamored with the idea of being the best, it’s important to note that anything less is unacceptable to immigrant parents. Burning out is not an option and if you get close to it, that’s where the Italian guilt starts. “Tired? Tired from what?” Frankie’s father yelled up the stairs. “You sleep and eat and go to school. When Nonna was your age, she was taking care of two babies while Grandpa almost died in war! Discrazia! I didn’t get to finish middle school because I had to work to help Nonna!” Frankie’s father almost never walked upstairs, he didn’t have to though. His deep rumbling voice could be heard 5 blocks over and it often was. For the longest time Frankie thought the Italian words she didn’t understand were nicknames and even sounded pretty. As she got older she soon realized they were insults. “I just don’t want to do it anymore. I have been playing soccer since I could walk. I want to do normal shit like hang out with my friends after school and I don’t know…. Go to the movies?! Why do I have to live the life you couldn’t if I don’t want to. I’m a disgrace for that?”
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