DR. WALLACE: I'm 16 and live at home with my parents and my two younger sisters. Our parents are really strict and lately my father and I have gotten into several arguments.

I also talk to my older brother, who is 24 and lives about an hour away from us. My big brother heard about this and he just invited me to move in with him and go to work at the factory he works at.

I'm thinking about it but I'm not sure if that would be the right move for me now. What do you think? Should I take him up on his offer or just let it go? — Not Sure of My Next Move, via email

NOT SURE OF MY NEXT MOVE: I recommend that you stay put in your parents' home for now and do your best to work things out with your parents. Seek to reduce the friction between you and your father as much as possible and keep in mind that in less than two years, you'll be 18 years old and able to make your own decisions.

Finishing high school and obtaining a high school diploma will have foundational value to you for the rest of your life. Living with your brother an hour away would make it nearly impossible for you to keep attending your current high school, and you'd likely be tempted to drop out of school entirely.

Thank your older brother for his offer but make a good decision for yourself. Having strict parents is not the end of the world as their influence over you may actually benefit you later in your life, and you'll be an adult in your own right soon.

I LEARNED A HARD LESSON

DR. WALLACE: I'm a girl who's a sophomore in high school and I recently just lost my very best friend over a stupid mistake that I made that has caused a seemingly inseparable rift between us.

She told me something in confidence and made me promise not to tell anyone, and for two months, I kept this information to myself, but last week I happened to mention some details to a favorite cousin of mine who was visiting us from out of state. Well, this cousin talked to a few other people in our family before she left town, and one thing led to another, and the cat got out of the bag, if you know what I mean.

Once my friend got wind of her information becoming public, she immediately called me. I did tell her honestly what happened, but she has cut me off anyway.

I never dreamed that an "out of state" cousin could unravel my best friendship. My friend and I had been inseparable for the past two years. What can I do to win her friendship back now that this has happened? — I Made a Huge Mistake, via email

I MADE A HUGE MISTAKE: Yes, you did make a very bad mistake and there's little you can do right now to "win" anything back, much less her friendship. Don't think about "winning" anything, but rather think about not making a mistake like this ever again.

Sharing something that was intended to be confidential to all others means exactly that. This is a tough lesson to learn, but one that you need to absorb so that it is never repeated.

All you can do regarding your friend is write her a note and send it to her. Apologize and don't try to minimize what you've done. Explain that you'll understand and accept that she may never want to speak to you again.

End with letting her know that if she ever does want to speak to you again sometime in the future, even months or years from now, that you will always be open to hearing from her and that you will deliver your most sincere verbal apology directly to her, as that's the least you can do.

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.

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