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you do not have to be ‘beautiful’ to deserve love.

you do not have to be healed to deserve love.

you do not have to be productive to deserve love.

you do not have to be successful to deserve love.

you do not have to become someone else before you are worthy of love.

you do not have to earn kindness or care.

you are already worthy of those things.

Beloved Aphrodite, goddess who grants to us the greatest of joys, the harshest of sorrows, the sharpest of pleasures, the dearest of pains.

Aphrodite, freshest of Olympos’ flowers, your lightest touch can turn the hearts of men towards love; with voice sweet as honey, sweet as wine, you speak words of persuasion, we hear and heed, rapt in wonder.

O Aphrodite, grace and beauty surround you, where you pass, the roses bloom, with sweetest scent and sharpest thorn: with reckless hands we grasp them.

Aphrodite, born of blood in the cold salt sea, born of the fallen sky, goddess whose kindness can be so brutal, who cruelty we cherish, blessed are your children, blessed those your favor, blessed those who have felt your might, blessed those who dwell in your domain.

A weighted stuffed animal that corresponds to your deity. [Artemis -deer, Hera - peacock, Hestia - pig]

Oversized sweater with embroidery. [Artemis - woodland, Iris - rainbow, Demeter - flowers]

Water bottle covered with stickers. [Persephone - flowers, Athena - book quotes]

Colourful pens for journaling [Hestia - sepia, Hera - rich greens, Iris - rainbow]

Rings with details to fidget with. [Demeter - flower, Athena - tree, Artemis - bow]

Meditation or Anxiety deck in corresponding colours/themes. [Hectace - purple, Nyx - night sky, Hestia - foods]

Meditation pillow in a pattern or colour representing your deity. [Athena - grey, Aphrodite - pink]

Books and magazines!!! [Artemis - National Geographic, Demeter - gardening, Hestia - interior design]

Candle, with a scent, colour or name appropriate to your deity. [Aphrodite - rose, Hera - chocolate]

Medication organiser in your deity's colour

Mini noise machine or background noise [Artemis - forest, Amphitrite - waterfall, Hestia - fireplace]

Cosy socks in your deity's colours or patterns [Amphitrite - dolphins, Hestia - Moomins, Iris - RAINBOW]

Animal cooling face masks. [Artemis - bear, Hestia - cow, Aphrodite - dove]

It worked first when it was said to people who treated the gods like charaters instead of religious figures. It worked when it was said towards people who expect the gods to do everything for them. I think the problem comes from people phrasing it like how parents say "I'm not one of your little friends", like.. you're right.. but it's a horrible way to word it.

Then people thinking "do the gods hate me", "will I be punished for my small mistake", and other similar things found the phrase. I legitimately think a lot of people would benefit from treating the gods like their friends. If you're accidentally disrespectful, give them an offering and apologize. If you said something wrong/ were uneducated, learn and do better in the future. The gods won't abandon you for one small mistake or the actions of others around you. This is without even going into kharis and how you wouldn't ask strangers or colleagues you don't talk to for help on big things without paying them back properly.