Dear Blake,
My husband and my son recently moved from Miami, Florida to Rhode Island. At the time, our son was excited to move (we kept asking him to make sure). However, we are now nearly through the school year and he still hasn’t made new friends. He’s depressed and wants to move back.
He plays a sport and has a part-time job, but neither have helped. My husband and I love it here. In fact, our son loves everything except his lack of a social life (beyond texting, FaceTiming and playing video games with his old friends).
We work from home, so it would be an option for us to temporarily return so he can finish his remaining two years of high school in our original state. He has always been very social, so we are surprised he hasn’t made new friends. Should we push him to keep trying? Or is moving back for two years the best for his (and our) mental well-being?
Signed, Sophia
From Mami, Florida
* * * * * * * *
Dear Sophia,
Geographical moves can sometimes be very traumatic for teenagers. Other than to avoid the humidity and mosquitoes, many people would question your sanity regarding your recent move to New England. Anyway, here are some of my thoughts. You said you son plays a sport, but you didn’t say which one. Tell him to avoid baseball, because Rhode Island is so small, that when hitting a homerun, the baseball can easily land in another state and get lost, no matter which direction the batter is facing. Or, does you son like the ocean? Sailing, and most particularly the America’s Cup race, is deeply ingrained into Newport culture and history. He might be able to do that, because very few people in Rhode island have heard of jet skis. If you send him back to Miami, for the sake of his safety, I’m assuming he still knows what to do if he is walking downtown and is attacked by alligators. But here is a comforting thought. Even if you send him back with very little supervision, he will be in one of two places if you’re looking for him. He’ll either be in rehab after he becomes addicted to any number of easily accessible illegal narcotics in that city, or possibly jail if he gets arrested for committing countless thefts to support his drug habit. I hope this helps.
Blake