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i cant remember how many times ive been told by elders
” dont call me sir”
only to reflexively reply “ yes sir”
/-)
upbringing + boot.
( boot taught me to address enlisted by rank, officers by sir , civilians by sir )
LOL, same here. I call all men sir, even teenagers...and I call all women Ma’am.
My wife hates it when men call her “Ma’am” in this Northeastern state, but she smirks when I do it...:)
We called my dad “Dad” when we were initiating a conversation, such as “Dad, can I go to a friend’s house..”
But if he called your name, asked you a pointed question about something he was angry about, a yes or no question and you answered in any other way than “Yes Sir” or “No Sir” he would growl at you “Yes WHAT?”
Most often when he was angry. And we had to answer to my mother in the same form, with a “Yes Ma’am” or “No Ma’am”.
And if it was said disrespectfully, which was rarely ever, he would call you on the carpet for an ass chewing. I never had the guts to do it, but my older brothers did on occasion.
In those situations, I watched and learned.
My favorite line is “don’t call me sir, I work for a living!” My kids have always called me “Dad “, and I’m “Opa” to my grandkids.