Dear Abby: Should I call my half-sister out on her flimsy excuse for not visiting me?

Dear Abby: Should I call my half-sister out on her flimsy excuse for not visiting me?

DEAR ABBY: I was adopted at birth. Through DNA testing, I have made contact with my half-siblings, and as a result, I was able to meet some of them and other relatives at a family reunion four years ago. They live 900 miles away. Because of this reunion, I now have a relationship with my maternal half-sister.

Herein lies my problem: A month ago, during one of our bi-monthly phone conversations, I told her that she and my brother-in-law had an open invitation to visit anytime they wanted. She responded that she could never travel that far. If anything happened to one of her family members, she would never forgive herself for not being there for them.

Well, since then she has traveled with friends to take part in a five-day sporting event 325 miles away from her family. I am hurt because she was very emphatic about not leaving her family for any amount of time. Should I ask her again about visiting and remind her about what she said about traveling away from her family? — SECOND-CLASS IN SOUTH CAROLINA

DEAR SECOND-CLASS: I don’t recommend confronting her. If you want to invite her again, of course you can do that. But if she’s reluctant, rather than put her on the spot by personalizing it, let it go. If you have invited her more than three times, accept that for whatever reason she isn’t comfortable with the idea. Rather than a reflection on you, her reason could be financial or limited vacation time — or that a 900-mile trip to visit you is lower on her priorities.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.