Surviving Tough Times By Building Relationships On Hive

Considering that this has been a very tough year for me with the loss of my most precious person in the world, I think I've somehow fared better than I thought I would.

I envisaged things might come down to the wire a long time ago as I already started thinking about how I wanted my life to be. A year ago, I had been rallying around to see if I could find a solution to my only problem which was my Mom's health but it was difficult because we never really knew what exactly the problem was.

It was a case of her assuring us she was fine when we can see that she was losing weight every day. My mother was a strong woman and even after she departed, I can still feel her impact.

She was a strong Christian and her dying early of sickness which I don't understand has changed my perspective about religion. I don't talk much about that but the truth is I really can't find myself happy in a church.

My mom was a writer, It sucks that I'm not half as good as she was. With Hive, I've been able to at least write alot of articles. In a year, I've learned from alot of writers here and the different communities on the chain have helped me so much. I started with writing and making only chess content but now I've advanced to writing book and movie reviews. I haven't done a great job becoming an expert writer however, as my friend Eddie would say, "You don't need to be an expert or a professional to write on Hive" - True, All you need is to Understand what the word "COMMUNITY" Means

Right From The Very Moment...

@acidyo wrote an article titled Give value to the community and the community will have your back and I relate so much to it, In fact, I had a long comment on that post.

I don't know if I can paint a true picture here but I'd try. I'm 22 and living alone in Nigeria. I did have only my mom who is now late and my father who I barely talk to as my only family. My distant relatives kind of cut off from us a long time ago. In reality, I had my mom and chess.

I learned chess when I was 10 and it has been my only source of happiness, sadness, and other emotions. The reality of the country began to set in after covid, I realized I wasn't a junior player anymore and chess won't put food on my table. My parents had tried to cover the fact that life was hard for a very long time. In all honesty, They did well.

When I realized this, I started to look for opportunities on the Internet. Truth is, I've always considered myself someone that can learn anything if I put my mind to it. In the educational segment, I've had excellent results.

I know I wasn't going to get a job, and even if I did it wasn't going to be enough for myself and my parents. They don't have a job and unfortunately for them, I wasn't winning chess tournaments anymore. I didn't think of Steemit because when I last checked, I didn't get enough upvotes for my chess content, Plus I didn't even know how the Blockchain worked. I was only there to play chess.

I think the highest upvote I got was when I reported this bug on lichess to utopian-io

I left out of frustration. I found Hive from a chess link by @stayoutoftherz. I saw on the post that one must be on steemit, Hive, or Blurt to participate and get rewarded. I noticed I had a surprising Hive account. Anyway, I figured it out and Here I am... One year old!

Hive Truly Helps...

I've read alot of posts with headers like "Hive change my life" or something related but most have been as regards financial transformation.

Yes, I've made money writing and engaging in Hive however, I'm much more grateful for the eye-opening opportunities and relationships I've built within a short period.

I started my Hive journey in a very complicated manner. I had an account that was already 3 years old. I knew no one and I had no clue how Hive works. All I knew was that it was a better place compared to steemit. I began to read and I gradually understood certain things. Geekgirl said something in a post of hers, what she said stuck with me and I never forgot. She said "Take Hive as a game" Just keep leveling up.

I became so passionate about it. I was everywhere. I told my mom that I found something better than chess. I almost onboarded her... (I wish I did). She advised I enjoy it as much as could. She was really excited at the possibility of me relating chess to a social network.

She saw me say "Hello everyone, It's samostically" - My sweet pseudonym

I did alot of chess videos, I don't do much these days. I was greatly encouraged by @threespeak & @singhcapital. It was a very big motivation for me. It helped me grow my reputation. She knew my strong point and she advised me to use it. I was very engaging, in fact, I love to meet new people, Explore culture and make friends. She then advised me to start a show and that's how I started my 5 Hive Questions

5 Hive Questions With Samostically

I have spoken to different Hivers around the World on this show. It's weird to think that sometimes when I'm sad I tune in to my 3speak channel to watch an episode. I think my only friend not on this show is @edicted... Happy Birthday to him in advance! He's been a really good friend.

Talking About Friendships...

I don't think I would have handled what this year brought well without my friends on Hive. It's been a very tough one for me. I'm really grateful. I'm a bit emotional writing this post but I really am.

I spent most midnight months ago playing factorio or "Go" with edicted.

I've also ran my life struggles with @selfhelp4trolls who has been really supportive. I would forever be grateful to @dreemsteem for not making me give up on Hive. The list is endless... But it just goes to show how Hive has impacted my life.

When push comes to shove, Hive has helped me Survive!

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Thanks For Reading!

_{Free image by doze, gifs via tenor}