Dear Abby: Sis goes no-contact after group text

Dear Abby A sparse years ago my uncle made a controversial comment about a social issue in my mom s family group text The issue was crucial enough to my sister that she requested discussion about it cease because she didn t agree with what they were saying When the discussion continued she decided to cut Mom s family out of her life taking a cue from my brother-in-law who had made a similar decision about his own family My wife and I bought a house and decided to throw our first party there inviting both sides of my family My sister still refuses to be anywhere near Mom s family She explained she wouldn t be coming even though I also invited Dad s family with whom she gets along well Although my political and social views align with my sister s I am also family-oriented so this has been tough on me and my parents I m sad that Mom s family may never see my sister again because one or two bad apples spoiled the barrel for her I wish this could be resolved before it s too late Do you think that s attainable Family-Oriented in Illinois Dear Family-Oriented I don t know why the offensive conversation didn t stop when your sister required Clearly the comments your uncle made were so deeply offensive to her that she no longer wishes to have any contact with him Is this fixable Only if one of them is willing to give and from what you have written that doesn t seem likely From now on if you want a family gathering be prepared to host one without Sis Dear Abby I m a man who has worked for a large company for a large number of years I not long ago became acquainted with a newly hired woman who is beautiful smart funny and compassionate We talk almost daily and I m becoming romantically interested in her From her behavior she may feel similarly I d like to take things to the next level by inviting her to lunch There is one major issue I m in my mid- s she s in her early s I m not sure if she s aware of the large age difference but I m sure she realizes I m considerably older If we do decide to pursue a relationship I know there will be comments and jokes from our co-workers which I can deal with but is a relationship wise considering our age difference I have never been interested in a woman this young before She is special to me People say age is just a number Is it Old Romantic Fool Dear Old Romantic I am less concerned about the difference in your ages as I am the number of years you have been at your job and whether there may be an imbalance of power between yourself and the new hire If there is a procedures against fraternization in your workplace your job or hers could be at menace If there isn t then it wouldn t be out of line to invite the young woman to lunch If anything bothers her about the age difference IF the relationship progresses I m sure it will come to light Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren also known as Jeanne Phillips and was founded by her mother Pauline Phillips Contact Dear Abby at www DearAbby com or P O Box Los Angeles CA