My friend won't pay me back after I loaned her $2,500. How do I ask for repayment without ruining our friendship?

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Dear For Love & Money,I have a good friend who was going through a financial hardship, and she asked me for a loan. She assured me she would pay me back quickly. I'm young and don't have a lot of savings, so giving her $2,500 was most of my buffer.It's been months, and every time I bring it up, she puts me off or changes the subject. I don't want to lose my friendship! What should I do?Sincerely,Not a Loan Shark

Dear Not a Loan Shark,I'm sure you've learned your lesson, so I won't beat you over the head with it, but for the rest of my readers, I feel like I should put the moral of this story into words: Loaning money to our friends isn't always a good idea. If your friend is in dire need of financial support and you can afford to help them, give them the money as a gift.I know this advice may seem harsh, but my reason for giving it is summed up in your predicament: Healthy relationships have clear boundaries.I learned this lesson from my own hard-won experience with a friend. She and I shared one of those incredibly close, doing-life-together friendships where we hung out and took our children places together, constantly. I began covering her dinners, her and her kids' tickets to events, and reimbursing her for more than a tank of gas any time she drove us anywhere, because that's what I always did with friends.