One of the surest signs of aging is when people start calling you "ma'am." What is "ma'am?" It is short for Madame, which is French, but I guess we have no true equivalent in English.
A few days ago, I was at the supermarket thinking how this teenage cashier was probably going to call me “ma’am,” so I braced myself. What came out was much, much worse! He had been well-trained for his position. He was taught to look at the name on the credit or debit card, so that he could use the customer’s
first name.
He said “Have a nice day, Gloria!” I was so surprised I started laughing. Here I was thinking, “What could be worse than “ma’am,” and he found it. The only thing worse than being called Ma’am, is being called by your first name by a stranger, and a teenager at that!
We need a better word to show respect for women we don’t know. I’m okay with Miss, but that seems only to be used for young women under the age of 25. “Ms.” was supposed to fill the void, but it doesn’t work without a last name, and you can’t say “Hey, Mrs.” either.
I do not think children and teenagers should call unfamiliar adults by their first names. I think there should be a more respectful and courteous way. It’s pretty informal here in Florida, but what kids and even adults here do is to put Miss or Ms. in front of a first name. It used to remind me of Miss Scarlett in Gone with the Wind, not being from the South, but now I’ve almost gotten used to it. Miss Gloria is better than other epitaphs.
As a matter of fact, since ma’am comes from another language anyway, I’d like to suggest Doňa. It is a title of respect for adults borrowed from Spanish. It is sort of like “aunt” but indicates a family friend. Just call me…Doňa Gloria!
