Dear Miss Emily:

I am a 16 year-old girl and live in Southern California. I am a christian. and i sing in my church choir and I'm also  our youth group's leader .I have met this guy that plays the piano and is christian too. He's a really sweet guy, but hes 25. I really think he's a sweet guy, but im not sure if i should give him a chance because of the age difference. He does qualify for a lot of things on my list that i look for a guy, but I'm just not sure if i should date him even though he's older?

----------------------------------Miss Emily's advice----------------------

I'm fairly liberal thinking in these areas, and maturity is a factor that can make it work when there's a big age difference, but I think it might be too big in this case. You're sixteen. If you were 18 or 19, well, I think I would feel differently. And I wonder if your family would approve and, of course, that's an area of concern, as well. I know how hard it is to resist a temptation like this because I am sure he's a great guy, but I tend to think you should take a pass, and chalk this up to a crush that stays a crush.