WRITING PROMPT | THE IDENTITY CURRENT
The Identity Current Feb 2023 Prompt: The Job of Self-Love
If we don’t love ourselves, will anybody else?
A perceptive reader (well, several) noticed that my last identity article was…well…a bit of a downer as I described how I viewed myself as “wrecked-up.” Then yesterday, I published an article that kicked off with negative feelings about Valentine’s Day: we should love and care for our significant other every day, not just once a year.
TIC Co-editor Jenny Starr✨and I discussed a prompt for February to integrate the idea of Valentine’s Day with our purpose of exploring identity. Since Valentine’s Day is shoved down our throats as loving and caring for somebody else, an obvious question arose:
What happens if nobody loves or cares for you?
Self-love as exploring identity
If we must love and care for our significant other every day of the year to ensure a healthy relationship, what do we do for ourselves? Certainly, a healthy identity and good mental health begins by taking care of ourselves — by loving the person we are and caring for our body, mind, and spirit.
I’ve learned over the course of several jobs that if I do not demonstrate how much I value myself, nobody else will feel it necessary to value me, either. How people perceive us begins with the way we choose to treat ourselves. When we value ourselves, it inspires other people to value us — perhaps even to love and care for us.
The call to action!
The writing prompt for the month of February 2023:
How do you take care of yourself?
Does lack of self-love snowball into other parts of your life?
Can we show others we value ourselves without appearing arrogant?
When must we mitigate the damage done by allowing others not to value us?
Any personal stories and how they illustrate the questions are perfect for us! If you have not already been added to The Identity Current, I urge you to check the Submission Guidelines and give it a shot! We would love to hear from you.
And if you want to try your hand at some creative writing, we invite you to incorporate the idea of self-love into a creative fiction piece, short story, poem, or work of art that helps us see you and share your perspective. Perhaps being creative is one of the ways you self-care. Go for it!
In the meantime, those of you in the Publication already — what do you say?
Kay Blue Rose, Ari Jensine 🦄✨, being belinda, Blackthelma, Emily Coal, Jas Martinez, Jill Eng, Jack L, Kitty Whitemore, Megan, Saoirse, Stephanie Moga, Tara, Tucker Lieberman
