Just Ask Georgia: 5/1/2024

Georgia, I have a question,

I have a relative whom we always invite to dinner parties, whether for a holiday or just for fun. She always replies that she’d be happy to attend.

My issue is that she doesn’t eat our meals. She will place a small amount of food on her plate and maybe eat half. Her excuse is always that she’s not hungry at the moment. She behaves this way at the homes of other relatives, too. Also, when we go to restaurants, she never finishes her plate. I think she’s being rude in accepting a dinner invitation and never eating. What do you think?

Finish Your Plate!

Dear Finish,

Actually, your relative is being extremely polite in not making a fuss about her obvious - to me at least, who has the same problem - food restrictions.

Nowadays, it is both useful and customary to ask prospective guests if they have any such limitations. However, for someone who has many restrictions, it may be easier for them to act like they aren’t hungry and only eat an amount they know won’t hurt them too much. In the case of this regular visitor, it seems rude to watch her struggle with her problem and make no attempt to find out why or to fit it - and to take insult when she is trying to avoid just that.

With love, Georgia

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Please note: this column is just for fun. No person, animal, or property has ever been harmed or in danger. Satire is “the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people’s stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues.”