Being Manipulative

I was talking to a dear friend after a long time. He is getting married and he wanted to know a convenient time to invite me in person.

It's a trend to have two wedding invites, one for family and relatives, and another for friends and colleagues. He said he'd give me the one for family. I told him it wasn't necessary to be formal and that I didn't need an invitation. It would suffice if he just provided the address.

The conversation progressed and we talked about other things and then the topic came again. He stressed on the point of the invite for family. I again said that I didn't mind either one. So he added that he is giving me the invite reserved for family because he considers me family. So I said I assumed that the first time he said it but I didn't want to be explicit about it. To that he replied that I have become manipulative and made him say the words out loud.

This conversation got me thinking about myself and how I have changed over the years. Being manipulative isn't an adjective anyone I know would use for me. I find it hard to believe it myself. But I didn't take it as a negative. A few incidents over the last few years have moulded me into this person and I don't regret becoming this. But as we grow, we see life around us and we lose our goodness. At the end, we remain mostly good but with bad traits.