Let me clarify that a little. It was not my everyday, fun, loving, normal parents that I feared, it was the parents they became when I did/said something stupid/wrong and I knew better. So I guess my question is this.....When did it become okay for children to speak to their parents in such a way that makes my jaw hit the floor. And believe me, if I had spoke to my mother that way, I would be picking my jaw up off the floor (along with some missing teeth!) It was just not acceptable in our household. It didn't just apply to my parents either, it applied to any adult I was speaking to. I remember my younger brother being about 5 years old when he started opening doors for women, and knowing without being told that if we were in any kind of waiting room and a woman was standing without a chair to sit down in, he would immediately get up and offer her his seat. And he was 5! I see teenage boys now-a-days that do not even do things like that. Don't get me wrong, you do once in a while stumble upon children who have been raised with respect for others but it is rare. I know that my children will for sure be raised to have respect for us. It will be non-negotiable in our house.
