DEAR ABBY: The pandemic has put relationships to the test. Last year, I lost my best friend of 40 years to COVID-19 vaccines. I think the vaccine helps keep me safe, as well as helping my family and friends. This friend decided that he and his family would not accept the prick. He quit his job instead of getting vaccinated. This caused such a rift that, in his eyes, he and his family could no longer be friends with our family. I am sad because of that.
The big problem my wife and I are facing is our 8-year-old daughter. She has been best friends with my (ex) best friend’s daughter since her birth. It’s been eight years of sleepovers, birthdays, visits to the park, reunions, and everything in between. We haven’t seen them in six months. We can’t keep telling our daughter that the pandemic is the reason she can’t see her best friend. This situation is so simple and so complicated. What do I tell my daughter about her best friend? — VICTIM OF THE TIMES
DEAR VICTIM: Tell your daughter the truth: that her friend’s parents won’t allow it anymore. Then explain why. That way she won’t think this is somehow her fault.