Writing is something I picked up as an outlet for my emotions, the words I put on paper offered a small window to what I felt inside.
Certain events in my life made me become a very temperamental teen, I was always quick to react, transferring my pain and worries as aggressively as I could to anyone who came too close. They were times I could hear words in my head, they offered a semblance of comfort at the time and I'd find myself retreating into the dark corners of my mind just to hear them again. I honestly never gave much thought to writing at first but that changed when I met someone who encouraged me to pick up that pen and write it all out, to put my feelings into words. Looking back now, I'm really glad that I did.
This continued till I left high school and since getting into the tertiary institution immediately wasn't an option, I went on to look for a job. I eventually got one at a wholesale food store where I ended up meeting and making friends with the wrong set of people. There was this guy in particular, the worst among the lot actually. The only reasonable thing he did was letting me know that I could make money online through my writings, this actually triggered my hunt for a platform that I could use.
Unfortunately, I didn't have a smartphone then and computer gibberish was really not my thing so yes, I was more or less a complete stranger to the tech world. He said he was also a writer, he handled multiple blogs in different platforms and was making money from them. He offered to give me one of the blogs and assist me with his phone to update it whenever I wanted to. This indeed sounded like a good plan till I found out it was all a lie, he had absolutely nothing, not even a plan for his life and was just looking for a way to get close to me so he could have his pound of flesh and bolt. Thankfully, that whole plan came to naught.
I heard of Amazon from other people I met later on but I didn't nurture the idea because it is a platform for writing and selling e-books and frankly, story telling is not my strong fort so definitely, I didn't belong there. I had also heard of Wattpad, as a matter of fact, I had first hand knowledge of this particular app because in a cyber cafe where I worked when I was 13, I explored this app to the fullest so yes, I knew I wouldn't be able to work with it.
A few years later, I got a smartphone but with no guidance at all, I was still hanging on a thread. I wanted to establish a source of income on my mobile device, I wanted to have something on the side I could do when physical jobs weren't present hence, I intensified my search. I met a lot of disappointments but I hoped and prayed everyday for God to direct my steps. Fast forward to last year, I secured a job opportunity that didn't just bring me a step closer to my goal, it literally pushed me to it and by July last year, I had finally taken a step in the right direction. I had managed to establish a cordial relationship with my Boss and on that fateful day, I asked if he knew a way for me to make money online through writing. He had a very vague idea about it but gave me the contacts of his friend who later linked me up with the person who opened my eyes to the Hive block chain.
At first, the proximity of our geographical locations almost posed a threat to the whole thing as she couldn't physically be there to guide me through the whole registration and account opening process but sooner than later, we were able to work our way through this phase and the process began. She laid out the steps and was quite patient to ensure that I followed them, she readily answered all questions I had on it and explained in detail what I didn't fully grasp. We may not have physically had a tete-a-tete but Deraa was there every step of the way to make sure I did it right. Truth is, it was really up to her to help me or leave me out to dry but thankfully, she did the former not the latter so yes, I'm indeed grateful for how patient she was with me.
After a couple of weeks of trying to register and failing, we finally succeeded and by October 2nd 2024, I made my introductory post on Hive. To make my journey easier, she highlighted a few communities ( this one inclusive) for me to be a part of and assured me that I'll find more that are to my liking as the day got older. She told me to feel free to ask whenever I came across something I didn't understand.
From the little time I've spent on this platform, I can see that the Hive block chain isn't just for writing and earning ( which was indeed my purpose of joining), it's a network of friends connected by their love for the melancholic art of writing, the oneness and unity here is something I don't see often especially from people who may not physically know each other. This kindred spirit, that's my best part of Hive and I am happy that I got to be a part of it.
Best believe when I say that I'm extremely happy that I found Hive but I'm more than overjoyed that Hive has indeed accepted me in return and I want to specially thank 
All images were imagined using https://www.meta.ai/