DEAR HARRIETTE: I have two children who are of voting age. I have been teaching them about the importance of voting since they were little. I believe my kids will vote in the primaries, but I worry about them and their friends. Kids these days seem so apathetic. How can I inspire my children and their friend group to take the midterms seriously? We need young people to wake up and participate in the political process. If I am too heavy-handed, they will ignore me. How can I get them to take action? -- Go to the Polls, Brooklyn, New York
DEAR GO TO THE POLLS: Encourage your children to volunteer around the election. Suggest that they gather a group of friends and offer to help people in a retirement home get to the polls on Election Day. Talk about other ideas that include them being of service to others to make sure that their voices are heard. Or you can suggest that they call up their friends and make a “date” to go vote and then hang out after. Ask them what they can do to make it fun. As you do this, remind them -- without being too pushy -- that their future lies in the hands of whoever wins the election on Nov. 6. They owe it to themselves to make sure their voice counts.