#41 ·
If your primary concern is avoiding any unnecessary hurt feelings, then a slow, tactical withdrawal is likely your best course of action.
You simply decline their invitations by citing various prior commitments or busy schedules, gradually creating enough distance until they eventually take the hint...
Mind you, I still find myself leaning toward the philosophy of radical honesty.
In that scenario, you would just be upfront and tell them quite clearly that you aren't interested in maintaining contact, and that moving forward, you'll stick to a polite "hello" if you happen to cross paths in a grocery store or something similar because that is what you've decided is best for you.
I suspect there might be some indignation involved, of course, but an angry person tends to drift away naturally, which serves your ultimate purpose, does it not?
I actually found myself facing a nearly identical predicament once; however, rather than opting for a direct confrontation, I ended up packing my bags and moving several hundred miles away on a whim. It was entirely unplanned, but it solved everything without a single difficult conversation—I simply stopped responding to texts and ignored the calls, leaving me with nothing to say other than silence when the phone rings. xD
You simply decline their invitations by citing various prior commitments or busy schedules, gradually creating enough distance until they eventually take the hint...
Mind you, I still find myself leaning toward the philosophy of radical honesty.
In that scenario, you would just be upfront and tell them quite clearly that you aren't interested in maintaining contact, and that moving forward, you'll stick to a polite "hello" if you happen to cross paths in a grocery store or something similar because that is what you've decided is best for you.
I suspect there might be some indignation involved, of course, but an angry person tends to drift away naturally, which serves your ultimate purpose, does it not?
I actually found myself facing a nearly identical predicament once; however, rather than opting for a direct confrontation, I ended up packing my bags and moving several hundred miles away on a whim. It was entirely unplanned, but it solved everything without a single difficult conversation—I simply stopped responding to texts and ignored the calls, leaving me with nothing to say other than silence when the phone rings. xD