Divya Venkat

Via: you can love each other but if you actually respect each other your beliefs will converge over time - https://x.com/divya_venn/status/1960290788425748902

Dying
happiness from the inside out - https://divyavenn.substack.com/p/happiness-from-the-inside-out - how to take control of your experience

I was sixteen and in a screaming match with my mother when I finally figured out how to be happy.
Passage Meditation
I used to think certain reactions were inevitable. Rejection had to make me sad, insults had to make me angry, praise had to make me happy. This was my first experience with the tiny, almost invisible space between perception and reaction, where, if I really wanted to, I could wedge in my toe (metaphorically speaking) and send things down a different path.

These days my parents are tired of fighting about me; they avoid it by staying in different hemispheres.

on the eve of commitment - what it takes to love long and well - https://divyavenn.substack.com/p/on-the-eve-of-commitment-what-it - an letter to K

infidelity in the digital age https://divyavenn.substack.com/p/infidelity-in-the-digital-age a letter from Duped By My Lover

You have to encourage honesty by reacting neutrally, even when they’re telling you something you hate to hear.
The only question is this: now that you’re drawn your boundaries, will he respect them? If you catch him lying again, leave and don’t look back. If he does what he said he’ll do, leave the past in the past and count yourself lucky to have an honorable lover.

when desire is a one-way street - https://divyavenn.substack.com/p/friendship-desire-and-feeding-the - emotional and physical intimacy is a vital human need

I see now that it’s a disservice to let someone lean on you when you cannot continue to do so sustainably. Every action sets a precedent; every precedent sets an expectation. When someone’s expectations are dashed, not only is the emotional fallout difficult to handle, it’s also harder for them to trust that same good thing when they find it again, even if it’s for real this time.

abusive or just an asshole? https://divyavenn.substack.com/p/abusive-or-just-an-asshole a letter from Brokenhearted In Bristol

In the end, you put up with whatever they do to you because there is nowhere else to go.

a man walked home tipsy - https://divyavenn.substack.com/p/the-prayer-that-makes-gratitude-inevitable-1e9 - you are owed nothing - Anayasena Maranam