TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 1ST, 2009

Q: My best friend just asked me to be her newborn son's legal guardian. I know she meant it as an honor, but I already have three kids, and taking on the responsibility for another child if something happens to my friend would push me over the edge. Can I say no? How?

A: It's not selfish to protect yourself. Can you ask her what she sees in you and then help her find those qualities in someone with fewer demands?
— Rushworth M. Kidder, founder of the Institute for Global Ethics

To see other answers to this question visit this link: http://www.oprah.com/article/omagazine/pkgtewsk/200909-omag-etiquette-legal-guardian

Note: Rushworth M. Kidder is featured regularly as a panelist for the Jancee Dunn's column, "Now What Do I Do?", pubished in each edition of "O" The Oprah Magazine.

Originally published by "O" The Oprah Magazine