Not your “mama”

The Indonesians call me “mama,” which to them is a title of endearment and respect, I think. The refer to all foreign women and Indonesian women of a certain age in the same way, but to me and my western background it is less than flattering .

To me a “mama” is a southern broad who has birthed a half dozen kids and who spends her time chasing the rugrats out of her kitchen with a giant wooden spoon and dressed in a mou-mou dress and apron. “Mama” sounds soft and old and feels huggable in a home-comforty.

I’m 22, sometimes stylish and certainly not a parent, and don’t want to be a “mama.”
But since they mean well I smile and accept the label, knowing that the Indonesians don’t identify the same image I’ve associated with the term.