Dear Twins: I’m twenty-five years old and I’ve been out of school for now and up to this point I’ve not done anything with my life. Until a year ago I finally realized that I was going no where fast as a street hustler and decided to do something that was a total 360% turn for me. I entered culinary school through the job I had as a cook at this nice upscale restaurant. Cooking was something that came easy to being raised by my grandmother. She taught me how to cook good southern style food and I picked up a few things on the job. Then one day my boss told me that he thought I should go to culinary school and that he’d help me get in if I wanted to do something with my life. I took him up on his offer and I’m scheduled to graduate in about a year or so. I’ve managed to conceal the fact that I’m in cooking school from my street friends because I’m afraid they would think I’m a punk. You see my friends don’t think much of guys that go to school let alone cooking school. How do I keep the respect of my friends and continue to pursue a life in the culinary world. How do I tell them and keep their respect?

Answer: (Linda) Given your age I think it’s high time you stop worrying over what your street friends think of you. I feel you have made the best decision by changing the direction of your life as street hustler. That type of life only ends one way because so many young men living the street life end up in jail or dead. Be man enough to tell them you are in school and be proud of doing the right thing. You see all young men have choices to make and as we mature we have to leave some friends behind.

Answer: (Brinda) I’m glad that you decided to take your boss up on his offer to go to school. This can only be a good thing for you no matter what your friends think. Often when you try to better yourself old friends find ways to hold you back. I think that you’ve made a wise decision and you’ll have to let old friends fall by the wayside if they can’t accept the fact that you’ve decided to go in another direction. Life is too short to let others determine what you do with your life. Go ahead and tell them and let the chips fall where they may. These guys aren’t paying any of your bills and if they are true friends they would want to see you do better.