DR. WALLACE: I have a nice sister and we both attend the same high school. We're out for the summer now. We have no other siblings, so it's just me and her. We've always been close, but lately I've had to deal with a problem that I never previously had to experience.

I'm the type of person who takes pride in my morals, even if I know I'm not a perfect person. When I make a mistake, I usually always try to correct it or make up for it as soon as possible. Unfortunately, I've been making a mistake that I know is wrong over and over.

My sister has been lying to our parents about a guy at our school who she is forbidden to date. She knows this and had asked me to not inform my parents of this when they asked me this past winter and spring. My sister even agreed with our parents that this guy was bad news and she committed to not see him socially any longer. So, this means that for most of the school year I covered for her. And then in early May she "broke up" with this guy, and I felt relieved. But I was at a summer event yesterday and I saw her hanging on this guy's arm again! She noticed me in the room, and when we both got home later, she again asked me to "cover" for her. I told her I'd think about it this time. Now I don't know what to do. I thought I had dodged the situation successfully when she stopped seeing him a few months ago, but now I'm right back in the midst of my dilemma. How can I ever resolve this matter? — Dealing With a Troubled Conscience, via email

DEALING WITH A TROUBLED CONSCIENCE: You need to put your foot down immediately. You already made a mistake during the last school year, and she benefited from that for a long time.

Now you need to tell her that you will no longer lie to your parents anymore. Tell her that she needs to honor her word that she gave to your parents. Also tell her that you deserve to have a clean conscience going forward from here.

This is her issue and her lie. Do not continue to be involved in covering for her any longer. Do tell her that you love her and will support her in all normal matters and issues that arise from here, but not this one. It's as simple as that.

I'M COMING FROM THE OPPOSITE POINT OF VIEW

DR. WALLACE: I've read a lot of letters to your column that are from the perspective of students complaining about their teachers. The complaints run the gamut of perceived slights, and some of them even made me laugh out loud.

However, I'm not writing you at all to complain about any teacher. In fact, this letter here is coming from the opposite viewpoint. Years ago when I was a sophomore in high school, I had tremendous challenges with mathematics. Fortunately, I had an outstanding teacher who recognized that I was struggling mightily. He stayed with me after class and even set aside some of his office hours to tutor me one on one, slowly enough so that I can absorb the principles gradually and confidently.

I feel that many students today can quickly find the time to write a letter complaining about a teacher, but very few, if any, take the time to publicly thank a teacher who made a difference in their life along the way. Please count me as at least one person who fits into the second category. — A Teacher Changed My Life for the Better, via email

A TEACHER CHANGED MY LIFE FOR THE BETTER: Your letter is both appreciated and duly noted. As a former teacher, coach and high school administrator, I can tell you that there have been many great teachers who went well out of their way to help students that I personally witnessed firsthand.

The squeaky wheel usually gets the most attention, and the side of the ledger that the most squeaks align with are the complaints, unfortunately. It's refreshing to receive a letter like yours, and to take the time to thank all of the anonymous teachers (from our perspective here) who go out of their way to help change the lives of their students in such positive ways.

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 rwallace@thegreatestgift.com. 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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