DR. WALLACE: There's a pretty quiet girl who goes to my school and I don't know her too well. However, I have had a couple of brief, friendly conversations with her in the past. It came to my attention that she has had some misfortune recently.

The situation has to do with her personally, not anyone in her family, and I must admit I feel really sorry for her. I know she's going to be facing a tough situation for the foreseeable future, which could extend to a year or so.

On the one hand, I would like to help her if I could, but on the other hand, I'm afraid that if I approach her directly and speak to her, it could be viewed as me butting into her personal life. I do have a few ideas and suggestions I could give her that would likely apply to her situation. Should I say anything or not? — I Truly Feel Bad For Her, via email

I TRULY FEEL BAD FOR HER: I suggest that you do speak to her, but don't get too in-depth at the beginning and do not try to specifically give her any recommendations or guidance immediately.

Instead, it would be far more appropriate for you to acknowledge the friendly nature of your previous exchanges, and to let her know that you were thinking about her, and you're there to help her if she needs anything specific you could assist her with. As you do this, it might be wise to ask her if she would be comfortable exchanging phone numbers so that you can check in on her occasionally. If this happens, as things go along you may later have an opportunity to bring up some specific information you feel might be helpful for her. Better to do this gradually after you've established rapport with her, rather than feeling like you're being pushy by bringing up the subject immediately.

OUR PROFESSOR REQUIRES A MUSE

DR. WALLACE: I'm a first-year college student attending art school. One of my professors told the class that we should each individually seek to find a muse as soon as possible.

He briefly defined his concept of a muse, and I also "Googled" the term later, but I'm still unsure of where to go with this idea. What do you feel a muse is, and how would I go about finding one on short notice? — Not Sure Where to Start, via email.

NOT SURE WHERE TO START: The word muse originated in Greek Mythology, but the application that has been suggested to you here is much more modern in its origin.

Briefly stated, a muse is any person at all who could trigger creative inspiration for an artist, in this case, you. It doesn't have to be a person you already know really well, it does not have to be a current personal friend or even a romantic partner. It's possible to have any one of those individuals be a muse, but someone else can fill this role for you as well. Take some time to think carefully about where most of your artistic inspiration comes from in general. Think about what you like to paint, why you choose the subjects that you find the most interesting, whether they be landscapes, inanimate objects, animals or human beings. Then, from that backdrop, seek to think about any specific people who may be affiliated with any of those categories that you find interesting. You could simply approach a suitable person and ask to buy them a cup of coffee or tea, and have a discussion about art in general.

It's as simple as that, finding someone who sets an example you appreciate or who has the type of personality, intellect, background or experience that you could draw from (pun intended) to help inspire you to develop new creative pieces.

Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at [email protected]. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: National Cancer Institute at Unsplash