Dear Kiss & Zutell,
My 46 year-old baby sister was recently divorced after a quarter century marriage. She still looks terrific, and has been dating up a storm. She just told me she's begun seeing a younger man from her office. How much younger? How about exactly half her age. On the one hand, I'm just thrilled for her (and a little bit envious). On the other hand, baby sis is the original sensitive soul. Her husband was her second boyfriend, probably because she couldn't have survived a repeat of the pain of the breakup with the first. Should I say anything to her?
Worried big sister
Dear WBS,
Any woman who can ensnare a male half her age is someone I want to meet. What's her secret? Since he's over 21 (albeit by a scant 24 months) it's not like your sister is in the Mary Kay Letourneau league. As Morticia Addams said, "You have placed him under some strange sexual spell. I respect that." So what's the problem?
Odds are your sister's marriage was over years before the divorce. And it sounds as if she never sewed any wild oats in her youth. Now that she's middle aged, she can really appreciate the thrill of naughty, wanton behavior. So what if she has a fling with a guy half her age? If she's foolish enough to get emotionally involved and he dumps her, that too, is a learning experience she needs under her belt.
Was anyone really shocked about Demi and Ashton? Had he run true to his boi form, he'd have dumped her via tweet. As a friend of mine said about 33 year-old Ashton, "A cute boy is cute. A cute man is disgusting."
Now J-Lo is dating a chorus boy who was in kindergarten when she was playing Selena. But I'm betting Jennifer, a veteran of three marriages, is keeping the "relationship" in proper perspective. He's probably more of a rental/accessory than a long term companion.
To answer your question, "Should I say anything to my sister," how about an emphatic "you go girl!"
As long as children are not involved, it really doesn't matter what happens.