Paternally Optimistic
When I was a kid I never understood the whole "my dad could beat up your dad," rhetoric.
Like I can remember one time back in my early years of grade school when a big brawny kid walked up to me and literally said that to me. And I was so confused I was just like, "OK."
Because here's the thing. My dad is a skinny nerd with thick glasses and clothes that say, "social pressure is a totally alien concept to me," and "also there's a decent chance I might actually be an alien." He is one of the most generous and gentle individuals I know.
He is the kind of person who gets to know EVERYBODY. Every time I went into the office with him as a kid he would introduce me to EVERYONE by name.
Like he would introduce me to his boss and be like, "Hey Kim, this is my son David. He's the one who told me about those Power Zoid toys I thought your kids might like."
He would introduce me to the security guards. "Casey, this is my son David. Casey is the one who helped me set up my camera on the roof to get that panoramic shot of Portland that I've been giving out."
He would introduce me to the janitors. "Hey Luis, this is my son David. He's the one I was telling you about that's on the cross country team like your daughter."
To my father, the term "stranger" is always a temporary status. We used to call him "Chatty Daddy" because he can (and will) start a conversation with ANYONE. If we ever walked around in downtown Portland and he overheard a group of Japanese tourists, he would walk right up and start talking to them in Japanese and ask them if they needed directions or anything.
So I was just baffled as a kid by the whole "my dad could beat up your dad" thing because in my head I would think, "Yeah probably. But what does it say about YOUR dad if he would beat up somebody like my dad?"