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!” 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 I got a phone call from my mother 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?