Long before social media, during my first year of junior high, a couple of my best friends from grade school turned on me with a vengeance.  Not only did they call me names, but they got up and left when I sat down with them during lunch.  Back then, sitting alone during lunch was one of the worst embarrassments a junior high kid could endure.   

A funny thing happened, though.  Soon after I was abandoned by my “friends”, a few genuinely nice girls joined me for lunch and grew to be good friends that helped my junior high and high school years be a very happy and positive time.   

In high school and later (even to this day), my former “friends” went out of their way to be nice to me, although they can never quite bring themselves to apologize.   I can sense the guilt all over them.