Arun Venugopal

Apr 4

3. Teatime at Night

— 3/30 People will always want my time and attention, but it’s up to me where I place it. “My life is full of terrible misfortunes, most of which never happened.” — 2/23 I breathe deeply. I drink my tea. Breathe. Focus. You tell yourself to focus, but on what…

4 min read

Feb 23

2. Processing Grief

2/12/22 Becoming comfortable with death is something strange. — 2/14/22 There is something strange about saying Good Morning the morning of the assembly. — 2/15/22 Updating seating charts without his name, picking up papers that he submitted to be graded, and dealing with the social media frenzy driven by unaware…

Mental Health

3 min read

Feb 23

1. A Statement of Intent

1/20 Through various combinations of experiences and lessons, I am afforded a privilege to be able to tell my story. I often struggle with feelings of not being enough. This, combined with a multitude of factors that made me perceive my presence in the world as an eccentric outsider, led…

3 min read

Feb 1, 2020

Allow Me to Reintroduce Myself

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Arun Venugopal. UH-roon VAY-noo-go-pahl. But by all accounts, Arun Venugopal should not be my name. What’s behind a name? A label? A history? An image? According to naming tradition in the state of Kerala, India, as my parents have explained to me…

Names

5 min read