Opinions

DEAR ABBY: Two years ago, I ran into an old friend I hadn’t seen in more than 25 years. We went to dinner the following week. The dinner lasted three hours. Abby, she talked the entire time!

DEAR ABBY: My husband and I have been married for eight years. For the most part, we are happy, but there is one thing that upsets me. He doesn’t like to have people over for social events.

So. You are a parent of a five-foot five-inch, sixteenyear-old son. A son whose dream is to be a professional basketball player. Who lives and breathes the game of basketball. He eats his breakfast with his ball tucked under one arm. And sleeps with it nestled on the pillow next to him at night.

It goes without saying that there are many questions in life. The funny thing is, we all approach the end of our lives with more questions than when we started. Although human beings learn a tremendous amount throughout their lives, the questions only seem to multiply as the years go by.

To prepare discussing Proverbs 11, I’ll refer to Psalm 26, verses 9-12, when David asks God not to take his soul along with sinners or lose his life through bloodthirsty men—whose hands do wicked acts and are full of bribes.

DEAR ABBY: My boyfriend, “Evan,” and his mother, “Mitzi,” tell people they are siblings. I love my boyfriend, but I don’t feel comfortable lying for him, and I wish he wouldn’t lie for his mother. Evan is in his early 30s.

DEAR ABBY: My husband died six years ago. I met a widower three years ago. He was nice and attentive, but not anymore. We moved in together, and the last two years I have been miserable. I pay half the rent.

DEAR ABBY: I’m a college junior in need of advice. I share an apartment with two other female students, “Wendy” and “Lauren,” who roomed together before I met them. Wendy is sweet and easygoing, but she grew up in a rural area and seems very sheltered.

DEAR ABBY: My father passed away three months ago, leaving my mom alone for the first time in her life. She lives nearby, so my wife and I have been doing what we can. We have her over several times a week, and we visit and call to check in often.

DEAR ABBY: One year ago, I convinced my daughter (64) to move here to Florida to be closer to me. I bought her a small mobile home to live in, and I don’t charge her any rent. Before she moved down here from Minnesota, she agreed to pay the lot rent and her own utilities.