Some parents think that just because they have more life experience, they automatically know more, even when it comes to your career and expertise.
So, how would you reply if a parent questioned everything you said about your job?
In the following story, a young lady deals with this exact treatment from her father.
Let’s see how she handled it.
AITA for telling my father “I do know about that”?
I (F28) am a wildlife biologist.
I have a master’s degree in Wildlife Conservation and am hoping to go for my doctorate soon. I have worked in this field since I was 16 and am very passionate about it.
When visiting my family recently for Easter, my mom asked me to tell the family a little bit about work.
I was very excited to talk about my current research! Here’s where the issue comes in, though.
My father (M60) would respond to almost everything I said with, “Hmm, I don’t know about that…”
At first, I tried to ignore it, but it just. Didn’t. Stop.
Eventually, I responded, “Well, I do, given the two degrees and all!”
Uh oh, that’s not the reaction she expected.
I responded in a light, playful tone, but he did not take it well at all. He immediately accused me of being disrespectful.
I responded, “I’m sorry, but it’s disrespectful of you to insinuate that you know more than I do about my field.”
Dinner got pretty quiet after that.
I finished the meal, helped with the dishes, and said goodbye before leaving, but on the ride home, my mother called me asking me why I felt the need to aggravate my father and why I had to “talk back.”
I am a 28-year-old professional; this feels insane to me.
AITA?
Sometimes, you have to be careful what you say.
Let’s see how readers over at Reddit weighed in on this situation.
According to this person, the father feels threatened.
Here’s a creative idea!
This person feels he should be proud rather than jealous.
Good point – both parents were a little out of line.
Another person who thinks the dad has a fragile ego.
You should respect your elders, but she had every right to stand up for herself.
The father was out of line.
If you thought that was an interesting story, check out what happened when a family gave their in-laws a free place to stay in exchange for babysitting, but things changed when they don’t hold up their end of the bargain.