“My friend and I have been best buddies for several decades. That means we know pretty much everything about each other. It’s been a comfort having this long history, but there are times when she, or someone else I know well, will bring up something from my long-ago past that I really don’t want to think about, much less talk about.

“Sometimes it’s about a past relationship, but it could be any number of things that I’ve left behind. These can be things that aren’t necessarily negative. Mostly I just don’t need to look back, or reminisce much.

“How do I draw a line — about not talking about things I let go of — without offending anyone?”

G: This is one of those relationship landmines that can trip up many of us. Simply put, no one can always be certain that what we say, even in passing,

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