Aparna

“Few things make us as vulnerable as admitting our mistakes, especially to someone we have every reason to think will be angry at us or, even worse, unreceptive or shut down. When we ask for forgiveness, there’s no place for defenses, for justifications. We have to make ourselves naked. At the same time, to forgive is an act of faith and trust. There’s little reason to expect that the transgression won’t happen again; once someone crosses a line, what’s the guarantee they won’t again? We live in a culture of avoidance; few of us have had models of forgiveness or were taught that feeling vulnerable and taking risks is a necessary part of intimacy. So, instead, we seek a kind of cheap grace.”
― Linda Loewenthal, Yearnings: Embracing the Sacred Messiness of Life

“we would be together and have our books and at night be warm in bed together with the windows open and the stars bright.”
― Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast

“If she's amazing, she won't be easy. If she's easy, she won't be amazing. If she's worth it, you wont give up. If you give up, you're not worthy. ... Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you; you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for.”
― Bob Marley, Bob Marley: Guitar Chord Songbook

“The ultimate relationship, we can’t help but think, is one in which forgiveness is easy, free-flowing, and immediate; where it requires little or no effort from either party, even when the hurt may be deep.”
― Linda Loewenthal, Yearnings: Embracing the Sacred Messiness of Life