When I was building LoveTags, I needed a way to test everything, so I started sending messages to myself. Tap the tag, see the text, hit send. Over and over, just to make sure the thing worked.
I wasn’t intentional, I was just debugging. But somewhere in the testing, once things were finally working the way they were supposed to, I realized I really liked it. Getting the message. And sending it, too.
I struggle with self doubt. It’s something I’m always working through, and it’s part of the reason it’s taken so long to put LoveTags out in the world. But somewhere between “how do I love other people better” and “does this button work,” I found a simple way to love myself. “You’re doing fine.” “I’m proud of you.” “I love you.”
Now it’s part of my day. I keep a Self tag on my desk, and tapping it isn’t a test anymore, it’s a habit. It’s one of the smallest things I do, but it’s become one of the most important.
Most of the images on this blog, including this one, are AI-generated rather than staged photography.