Sometimes a column can spur a memory. A recent column about a woman who was short-changed in a relationship had that effect on Marnie.

"The column caused me to totally (mentally) revisit my experience with a high school boyfriend named Reggie.

"I was madly in love with Reggie. We met when I was 16 and he was 17. We were exclusive for over a year. He told me he loved me quite often and sometimes threw out hints about having a future together.

"We went to different schools, so we only saw each other on the weekends. I literally counted the days and then the hours until I would be with him again. He, however, was far more interested in his friends from his school than he was in me. Most of our dates involved him taking me to some party hosted by somebody from his school. He would walk in with me, steer me over to some group of girls standing together, and then he'd take off to somewhere else and just leave me standing there feeling like chopped liver.

"These were always girls I barely knew who didn't want to spend any time talking to me! They, of course, had come hoping to meet boys. I'd spent so much time dreaming of being with Reggie, and here I was, spending my time, instead, with the dateless girls from his school! He usually didn't come back for me until the party was over. When I tried to talk to him about it, he'd always say I needed to be more 'sociable.'

"A few years ago I found a candid photo someone took of me standing alone on a boat dock. I looked thin and pretty — and also miserably unhappy. That was a boat party Reggie invited me to. There weren't enough seats on the boat for everybody, so he took off with his friends and just left me standing there!

"One time he invited me to go to a movie with him. I thought we'd enjoy the experience together and then have that to talk about afterward. Instead, 15 minutes into the show, he said he was going out for popcorn or something. He didn't come back until the movie was letting out. His explanation? He'd run into some of his friends from his school in the lobby, and the conversation was so interesting he just lost track of time!

"Eventually, of course, he took up with one of his female 'friends' at his school, and that was the last I heard from him. I was devastated at the time, but got over it and moved on with my life.

"At any rate, the point I'm trying to make is that the most valuable gift in a relationship is the gift of your undivided attention. Everybody's free time is so limited. If a fellow is supposed to be spending some of his very valuable free time with his girlfriend and he's actually spending it with his friends, male or female, his girlfriend is being short-changed. I really wish I had known that before I spent over a year of my young life shutting down all the other boys for the one who said he loved me.

"I just had to get that off my chest."

Have you been short-changed in a relationship? Send your tale, along with your questions and problems to cheryllavinrapp@gmail.com. And check out my new ebook, "Dear Cheryl: Advice from Tales from the Front."