Annie Fox for Teens... Hey, Terra!

Annie (AKA Hey Terra!) has been around long enough to have experienced a lot of what Life can dish out. But, it hasn’t been so long that she's forgotten what it's like to be your age. Check out some of the thousands of email questions teens from around the world have sent to Terra. You may learn something useful from her answers:

Parents:
“I need a car!”

Hey Terra,

I am in college now and all my friends go by car. My dad moved out of the country so he sold the only car we had. I love driving cars and badly want one but my dad says he can't buy me one coz the family is in a financial crisis. I have found that my mom, after paying the loans, saves up a lot of money. Whenever I ask my mom about the car she says they don't have money and when I ask about why my sister gets stuff she wants she says they are saving for her future. Don't I have a future? Why are they discriminating? The car can be easily bought in finance schemes, but they are not willing to get me one. My dad says he loves me but he can't do this for me. What can I do?

It's got to a point where I can't stay without a car coz my college is 40kms away and my skin gets burnt driving the bike all the way.

How can I convince them to get me the car??

Carless

Dear Carless,

I can understand your frustration with your parent and your "car-less" situation, but those feelings alone aren't going to help you become a car owner. You can't force your parents to purchase anything that they don't wish to purchase. No amount of complaining will do that. In fact, it might make them resentful of your demands. They don't owe you a car. They are your parents, but if you're old enough to be a college student, surely you are no longer a child.

You don't seem to be able to see a solution to your problem, so perhaps I can point one out to you. Since you seem to know that a car can be "easily bought in finance schemes" how about earning some of your own money, putting down a chunk of it and purchasing a car on your own? That way you don't have to wait for anyone to change their mind. Does this sound like a plan?

In friendship,

Terra


Need some advice? Write to Terra. She'll give you a straight answer you can trust without any lectures.


What's New?
''The Girls Q&A Book on Friendship: 50 Ways to Fix a Friendship Without the DRAMA'' by Annie Fox, M.Ed., illustrated by Erica De Chavez Books & Apps for Teens
''Middle School Confidential 3: What's Up With My Family?'' iOS app ''Middle School Confidential 2: Real Friends vs. the Other Kind'' iOS app ''Middle School Confidential 1: Be Confident in Who You Are'' iOS app ''The Teen Survival Guide to Dating & Relating: Real-World Advice on Guys, Girls, Growing Up, and Getting Along'' by Annie Fox M.Ed.
''Middle School Confidential, Book 3: What's Up with My Family?'' by Annie Fox, Illustrated by Matt Kindt
''Middle School Confidential, Book 2: Real Friends vs. The Other Kind'' by Annie Fox M.Ed., Illustrated by Matt Kindt
''Middle School Confidential, Book 1: Be Confident in Who You Are'' by Annie Fox, Illustrated by Matt Kindt
''Too Stressed to Think? A Teen Guide to Staying Sane When Life Makes You CRAZY'' by Annie Fox, M.Ed. and Ruth Kirschner