Being "nice" and dipping at the lake house

I recall when I first saw someone take a chip and dip it into something. My parents were with their friends at a lake house for the weekend. My brother, myself and their son were playing on the boat when everyone was called to supper. The folks had grilled some burgers and hot dogs. We came up to eat and on the table sat, among other things, a bowl of chips and a bowl of dip. I recognized the chips but I didn't know what they called "the dip" and I sure didn't know what to do with it. I watched as my friend took a chip, slid it through "the dip," popped it into his mouth and ate it. I did likewise. My mother leaned over to me and said very quietly, "That didn't look nice, put the dip on your plate." Nice was one of Mom's favorite words. So, I had dip on my plate even though my friend and his parents dipped into the bowl with their chips. That incident didn't seem like a big deal because we ate quickly in order to get back to the boat. The next day at lunch, however, I was shocked as Mom and Dad were both dipping out of the bowl with their chips. Mom said it was "Okay." I guess all of life is about learning new things, even figuring out what "nice" really means.