Whoever brings you gossip is also carrying some of yours. They just haven’t opened that bag yet.

Gossip travels in circles, not lines. Whoever is telling you about someone else has already learned that you are a good audience, and that lesson does not stay pointed in one direction. The same appetite that makes a person fun to talk with about others makes them fun to talk about you with. Nothing about that is personal or malicious, it is just what a habit does.

Pay attention to how you feel afterward this week. If the conversation leaves a small residue, that is information. Try being the one who does not add the next detail and see how quickly things move on.