Dear Abby,

In a recent column, a woman wrote to say that one of her guests at a dinner party had   1 a fork, and she didn’t know how to recover it. I wasn’t that guest,   2   over the last 10 years I have taken three things from homes where I have been a   3   . Abby, I cannot understand 4  I took these things! I have thought over as to how   5   can get these things back! I can’t do it   6   and admit that I took them. This is a small town, and I’m well   7 here. If just one of these people talked about it, I would be  8   .