Dear Queenie,
My best friend from when we were children and I aren’t so close anymore. We didn’t have a fight or anything, we just got busy and stopped calling each other.
I’m not too upset over this, but I can’t help wondering about a gift I gave her some years ago that I never saw her use and my guess is that it’s just packed away in a box somewhere.
I liked that thing a lot and if she really likes it too I want her to keep it, but if she doesn’t care about it I would like to have it back.
Queenie, would it be okay for me to ask her about it?—Old gift Etty Ket
Dear Etty Ket,
A gift once given belongs to the recipient. You could ask your (former) friend how she likes whatever it was you gave her and if she offers to give it back to you accept with thanks. But do not ask her for it, and unless she specifically offers it to you forget about it.
