Today, so many parents think it is important to be their child's best friend. They've lost sight of what's important and that is to be the child's parent. It's real easy for a child to get confused if his father is his best friend. What's his father doing criticizing? If her best friend is her mother, why is her mother suddenly telling her what to wear and what not to wear. The line of demarcation in children has to be there and has to be firm. It has to be a line that children don't cross or else a child will start disrespecting a parent. That's what you do with friends. You can cuss out your friends. You can get mad at friends. You can slam the door with friends, but with parents you have to always have that respect. When a parent loses the respect, they lose the authority. Suddenly, you are telling your best friend for 13 years that she can't wear that dress. You are going to tell your best friend, "No. You are not going to go get drunk tonight," or "No, you can't have a car." This is where rebellion sets in. You are no longer their parent, you are their best friend. When my son was 13 years old, he did something that I disapproved of. I had to discipline him. He was very upset and confused. He looked at me with tears in his eyes, and said, "Dad, I thought you were my best friend." I said, "No, Sage, I've never been your best friends. I've always been your father." It was kind of a realization for him that I was his father. That's the way our relationship stayed. A lot of parents make the mistake that it's important to be their best friend, when children don't need best friends that are 35 years old; they need parents.