The tradition really is in honor of my mother, but should I just continue to ignore the lack of acknowledgment?

In today's Asking Eric column, R. Eric Thomas responds to someone who is confused why they didn't receive any retirement gifts from their employer or their co-workers.

When the larger group gets together, they let everyone know about the event through a text chain, which they have declined to include me in. I do get invited to quarterly birthday parties (there’s a separate text chain for that),

DEAR ERIC: I love to send holiday cards. On my list so many brides opted to not take their husband’s last name. It was no problem to address Mr. John Smith & Ms. Jane Doe. Now kids have come along. Am I able to use Smith Family even if the wife/mom does not use that surname?

In today's Asking Eric column, R. Eric Thomas responds to someone who isn't sure how to navigate their brother-in-law and his wife cutting them out of their lives.

Within a large group of friends, there are many sub-relationships. Some people are going to connect more with others; some members of the group might feel the same awkwardness you do. If you were already part of the larger group, you’d already have some of these sub-relationships going. But there’s no time limit. You can start cultivating them now.

When the larger group gets together, they let everyone know about the event via group text, which they have declined to include me in.

A meme featuring the musician's alleged comments made the rounds online, but there was no indication he actually produced the quote.