I ran a witness node on the Steem / Hive ecosystem for more than 5 years. During this time I had just a couple of hiatuses, none of them longer than 2 months.
It's been a bumpy ride, to say the least, but an incredible learning experience. I met super cool people, I participated in community events, I initiated and implemented many 30 days writing challenges. All in all, it was fun.
But there comes a time in the life of everyone when he recognizes the need to leave space for others. There's a new generation of witnesses coming up to Hive, many of them with powerful ecosystems of applications. They deserve to be ranked higher.
In all honesty, my witness node wasn't very high ranked and it was more of a sentimental activity for me. But I realized this activity is better done by other people. Also, blocking an entire server for that, making sure it's secure (which is a continuous challenge) maintaining it, all this can be done by better prepared people.
So, if you voted for my witness, I encourage you to withdraw the vote and give it to other people, as my witness will stop producing blocks soon.
I won't leave Hive, I will be around, even if I'm not posting as much as I used to.