I used a warm and gentle voice.

I keep a copy of the Buddha Educational Foundation’s Standards for Being a Good Student and Child at my desk. When people come by, I open the book to any page for advice. I think Margie appreciated being told:

When your parents do wrong,
Urge them to change.
Do it with a kind facial expression
And a warm gentle voice.
If they do not accept your advice,
Wait until they are in a happier mood before you dissuade them again,
Followed by crying to make them understand why.
Do not hold a grudge against them if they resort to whipping you.

Unless she really did want to know if I had the manual for our Total Station.