I made the ultimate
faux pas at a memorial service recently. I was greeting mourners, and did not expect to find a friend in front of me. I addressed her as “Mama”, which is befitting for an older generation. Then suddenly I realised she was a friend!
OBSERVATION: In South Africa, one often addresses someone according to the generation to which they belong: grandmother, son, sister, child, and so on. In English, we seldom do that, except in small family settings.
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