DEAR ABBY: My boyfriend and I have dated for seven months. We have a good relationship in terms of compatibility. We are both Christian and educated, and we have good professions. We are fun-loving and both of us like to invest and travel. He enjoys my company and says I am the girl with the best qualities he's ever dated.

But I do have one issue: He stays in close contact with his former on-and-off girlfriend of 10 years and other women he dated. When I asked him about it, he said he cares about other people and likes to keep in touch with them.

An example: Last year when he was single, he wanted to take his long-term ex-girlfriend out for a day trip, dinner and a musical so she could get away from her apartment. Her daughter and grandkids, who were living with her, made her life very tough. My boyfriend and this ex also text each other often to keep up with each other's family and life.

I feel uneasy about this. Wouldn't most women? To me, if you don't think a relationship is working, you should stop seeing each other so you don't cause more confusion or stir up more emotion. How should I deal with this? I like this guy a lot and really think we have something going. -- SHARING HIM IN TEXAS

DEAR SHARING HIM: When people end long-term relationships, they don't all do it in the same way. Some of them have a dramatic blowup and never speak to the person again. Others remain friends for many years.

If your boyfriend's former flame has an adult daughter and grandkids, none of you are inexperienced kids yourselves. If you really want a future with him, you may have to accept that he won't be happy if you try to curtail his social contacts. If you can't summon up enough self-confidence to manage that, perhaps you should find someone else.

DEAR ABBY: I'm a 68-year-old married man with no close friends. I worked for 35 years in my family-owned bar and restaurant, until they lost it. After that, I worked as an assistant manager in a few fast-food places, then as an assistant manager in a major pharmacy.

At 65, after three knee surgeries and a foot fusion, I retired from working full time. I now work part time for a physical therapy center, mostly to keep busy and make a few bucks. I have no hobbies or major interests. I have a few health issues, which are under control.

I feel lonely most of the time. I know a lot of people and get along with people -- I just feel lonely. I have two sons I'm very proud of who have families of their own, but they're busy with their lives. I have no one to talk to who won't judge me for feeling the way I do. Can you give me any direction of where to turn? -- A BIT LONELY IN THE EAST

DEAR LONELY: You say you are married. Is it a happy marriage? You also have part-time employment. These are things to be grateful for. Your persistent loneliness may be something to mention to your doctors. The problem could be emotional, spiritual, existential or physical, or it may simply be boredom. But the place to start would be a doctor or a spiritual adviser to help you get to the bottom of this.

DEAR ABBY: My oldest daughter, "Kate," is 22. Her baby is now 6 months old. She is the first grandchild and great-grandchild. Kate refuses to allow my mom to hold her baby. My mom has held the baby a couple of times, but my daughter immediately swooped in and took the baby from her. During the last family gathering, Kate wouldn't let me hold the baby either, because she said I might let my mom hold the baby.

It hurts my heart to watch Mom treated this way. I know my mom. We haven't always been close, and sometimes Mom says the wrong things, but she is a good person and would never hurt the baby. Because I let Kate know my feelings, she is now refusing to come to any family gathering where Mom might be present, and she won't talk to me, either.

I'm struggling and emotional over this. Mom has done some very kind things for my daughter. She owns a timeshare and let Kate use it for graduation and her honeymoon. I feel Kate is using the baby as a weapon. Is there anything I can do? If not, how do I try to move on? -- THWARTED IN UTAH

DEAR THWARTED: Kate may -- or may not -- be using her child as a weapon to punish you and your mother for some perceived slight. She may also legitimately be worried that her grandmother might accidentally drop the little one. You stated that you and your mother weren't close for a period of time. If you and your mother weren't close, it would follow that your daughter wouldn't be all that close to her grandmother.

Of course, a solution to this problem won't be possible until you understand what has caused it, and that won't happen until your daughter is willing to give you some straight answers. Start there. If she refuses, you will have to live your life and hope that as your grandchild grows up, the dynamic will change.

DEAR ABBY: When a daughter is getting married, how do divorced parents sit, walk down the aisle and conduct themselves? -- ALMOST THERE IN NEW YORK

DEAR ALMOST THERE: First and foremost, the divorced parents should act like adults and bury their hostilities (if there are any) on their daughter's special day. Tact and diplomacy should be paramount. Depending upon the circumstances, the "person of choice" should accompany the bride down the aisle. If there is a stepfather, some brides ask each gentleman to walk halfway down the aisle with her.

If the parents are cordial, Emily Post says they can share the first row. If they aren't (and I am shortening this), the mother sits in the front row with her relatives behind her. The father and his relatives are seated behind his ex-wife's family. (If the bride is estranged from her mother, the father and his family occupy the first rows.)

DEAR ABBY: I am trying to come to terms with the passing of my wife, "Charlotte," a month ago. Many old friends and family have been supportive. What hurts, in addition to my grief, is the silence from a particular couple.

For years, we were very close with this family when we both had young boys growing up. We celebrated all the joys and life-changing events together, including going out to dinner every Friday and vacationing together. Once our boys were on their own, we gradually saw less and less of the couple, but still kept in touch occasionally.

When Charlotte passed, they were two of the first people I notified. They were out of town at the time, so I postponed her memorial a day so they could attend. I felt they were so important to us that they should be there.

I have not heard one word from this couple! They live a mile away, and I haven't received a dinner invitation or even a phone call. I'm shocked by their lack of caring, knowing I am home alone and devastated over Charlotte's passing. A simple phone call to ask how I'm doing would be helpful. What do you think about this? -- ABANDONED IN NEW YORK

DEAR ABANDONED: I am sorry for the loss of your wife. Because it is so recent, your pain must be overwhelming. Regarding this couple, I suspect that once your sons were grown, their friendship with you was already on the wane.

While it would have been compassionate for them to have stepped up when they received the news of your wife's passing, they (as many other people) may not have known what to say or do, so they did nothing.

If you wish to talk with them, by all means, call them. But when you do, do not expect them to offer more than cursory condolences. Concentrate instead on the friends who have shown they are willing to be there for you.

DEAR ABBY: I met a man online and have been dating him off and on for the past four years. His parents have been living with him since the pandemic, and I have yet to be invited to his home or to meet them. He is from Bolivia and says his parents want him to marry a Catholic Bolivian girl -- and someone without children. I am divorced, American and the mother of two.

He tells me he's afraid that if I meet them, our relationship will be over. He keeps saying they are moving back to Bolivia, but they are still here. I also have never met his friends. He says he never does anything with his friends, between his parents living with him and studying for his architectural exams. After all these years, I have yet to meet one of his friends. What should I do? -- OFF THE RADAR IN WISCONSIN

DEAR OFF THE RADAR: Recognize that this man may not have been entirely truthful with you about his circumstances. Bluntly put, he may be married, or he may not be who he has represented himself to be in other aspects of his life. Because your relationship hasn't progressed after four years of dating (off and on), what you should do is move on.