DEAR ABBY: I am a 55-year-old father of a 7-year-old child. My social skills and experience are rusty due to graduate school and post-graduate training years (12 years, to be exact) without much social interaction. I believe I missed an opportunity to bond with our 7-year-old.
Five years ago, my wife and I ran into a Hall of Fame ballplayer. I became so starstruck that I couldn’t stop blurting out how fantastic I thought he was. It did not go over well.
Fast-forward to today: My child’s classmate happens to be the child of yet another superstar. My wife told me, “Do not engage or talk to them.” She said she’d handle everything.
Well, I think I may have followed her instructions too literally and came across as rude or dismissive by not chatting with them. I’m afraid they may think I’m a snob or a jerk. How can I dig myself out of the hole I may have placed myself in? Because they are celebrities, I don’t want to invade their privacy.
I sent a holiday greeting to the email address shared in the school parent directory. No response. How should I interpret the non-response? Was my greeting delivered? Read? I also have their text number, but I don’t want to harass these people. — LOVING DAD IN THE SOUTH