DEAR HARRIETTE: I am an elementary school teacher, so naturally my students make me many crafts. I love every child I teach, and seeing their faces brightens my day. I have noticed a trend in how children craft. Instead of taking something home to their parents, they’ll give it to me. I find this gesture adorable, but these drawings are not high-quality. There are only so many child creations you can hang on a wall. I have been teaching a few years, and I tend to throw out crafts after a week. Children don’t even remember them!

Recently, the mother of a boy I taught last year reached out to me and asked for his work. I told her that her son took everything home that he wanted to, and she replied that he said he left things in the classroom for me. This work has since been thrown out, but I know this mother will be very offended if I tell her that. I am a young teacher, and I have never found myself in this situation before. How do I respond to her email? – Recycling Art, Philadelphia DEAR RECYCLING ART: Be honest with that parent, and tell her that the artwork was discarded at the end of the school year. In the future, let parents know that any artwork that children decide to leave in the classroom will not be kept. If the time limit is a week, tell them that. If it is until the end of the year, make that clear.

DEAR HARRIETTE: I am a straight college boy. I stress the fact that I am straight because, after a night of drinking, I was dared to kiss one of my friends. We couldn’t turn down a dare, so we kissed each other. It was completely platonic. Normally, that would be the end of this, but someone managed to snap a picture of us kissing. The picture is now circulating around the school’s population. There’s no way everyone’s seen it, but I know practically everyone at the party now has that photograph.

This isn’t an accurate representation of me, and I don’t even know how to address this photo. I did this in a crowded party, so I can’t really be surprised someone took a picture of me, but I wish this wasn’t spreading like wildfire. There’s underage drinking in the photo as well. I know who started sending this photo out, and I would like to say something to them. I’m responsible for my actions, but they’re responsible for causing all of these rumors to spread about me. – Straight as an Arrow, Detroit

DEAR STRAIGHT AS AN ARROW: Let your actions speak for you. Since you kissed your friend as a dare, you can say as much when someone confronts or teases you about it. If people tease you about being gay, ignore them. Speaking to the student who pushed the picture out will likely do nothing except possibly add fuel to the fire. Your best next step is to move on. Live your life. Be you. (And avoid getting drunk.)

— Lifestylist and author Harriette Cole is president and creative director of Harriette Cole Media. You can send questions to askharriette@harriettecole.com or c/o Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.