Ask Baba Yaga: Am I Still Friends With a Person If I Don’t Respect Her Anymore?

Transcript after the jump.

Dear Baba Yaga,

I have a friend who I’ve lost respect for. Her negativity, untrustworthiness, passivity, anger, arrogance and refusal to listen have chipped away at me for months to the point where I spend a lot of time talking badly about her to my other friends, fuming and becoming increasingly snide to her. But I know that makes me a terrible friend. I’ve forgotten why we became friends, although there are quieter “better” moments when we’re laughing over a shared interest. What do I do?

BABA YAGA:

The bones ; of yr friendship are buried deep in the silt of the riverbed , & you stand with yr feet in the sludge. )Do not be angry with yrself for getting dirty, as you will only smear more mud all over yr limbs. Perhaps once water rushes through the riverbed fully again, the bones will surface ; but for now, what you stand in is no longer a river.

Previously: “I’ve Got This One Physical Feature That I Fear Makes Me Look Grotesque”

Taisia Kitaiskaia is a poet, writer, and Michener Center for Writers fellow. She’s taking questions on behalf of Baba Yaga at [email protected].