My Love Story: How Hive Found Me (LOH #227).

This is one story I will never get tired of telling. See, if Hive were a man, maybe we would be married by now. So sit tight while I tell you of an epic love story, one that came about through a middleman and lovely messenger.

I was working for less than $15 monthly. From as early as 8am to as late as 10pm. It was a wine store. Before that, I had worked in very odd places as well. I had even travelled as far as Abuja, away from Home looking for greener pastures. That was one and maybe my only bravest adventure as a young girl of 19.

Anyway, I had decided to return home after some months and planted myself back in Kaduna. Then I got a job in 2021. When I became an employee, I understood after being interrogated by two customers that I needed to understand what I was selling. I didn’t need to drink it but I could read up on it and use the power of reviews. My imagination helped me a lot in this sense. I could imagine the tastes: the burn of the whiskey/scotch, the smoothness of brandy, the juiciness of red, the sweetness of crème, the ambiguity of the Rosé, and the hardiness of Vodka.

I used my mind to taste and that got me very far. Soon, I and customers would sit and debate the process of wine making and barreling. We would even talk about grapes and their role in the human body. Then came the questions about alcohol and health benefits. Whole grains and their effects. It was from one topic to the other. This increased customer relations and as a result, sales increased. I even met the guy I thought was the one there. That’s a different story.

Back to the main story. How I met Hive. I keep telling people that Hive found me. One slow day, a man pushed aside the slide doors. He was shorter, a bit rounder but possessed the agility of an athlete. I would later learn he was a regular at the gym. He had on a smile and his eyes sparkled with unbridled mischief. I thought in my mind, this one’s a handful. Yet, he was forthcoming, friendly and polite. He was outgoing and could hold a conversation. He had that power even when it was one sided. I admired it and thought what it would be like to be able to talk like that unfazed about what people may think about the content leaving your mouth. I had self-image issues, and I always saw myself as anything but a beautiful girl.

Deeper, we get talking and I think at some point I tell him I write. He sits up and asks me what I write. I tell him I work as a ghostwriter for some sites and people. He asks me if I’ve ever heard of Hive. I shake my head and he goes into this monologue (fascinating really) about what Hive is. I listen with rapt attention that turns into fear when I hear the terms “blockchain”, “crypto” and “web3”. I couldn’t understand all that but I understood that he made money from it.

My fear stemmed from the belief that I was a mess up and that coming here would only prove that. It took a while to get me signed up. I explored and got overwhelmed with information and people. I went into communities and I understood little to nothing. He would tell me to take my time and I would get the hang of it. I did. Wrote my introductory post and the next day, dared to do it and answer a prompt in Hive Naija. Then I would find the Ladies of Hive community and then Inkwell.

I would delve into stories made up with my minds eye. I would have conflicting moments with my writing and it showed. I would try to be who I’m not with finance and technology posts. I wanted to be the IT girl, much like Geekgirl, but then I would learn that I am more powerful in my element and that it was okay to be who I am in my blogs. I would try to make friends with the guys up there (mostly because I was hungry for information to their sources of wealth) but then I would learn that true connection is formed from here, right where I am. Then I would meet beautiful people and form unbreakable friendships.

Hive became a world on its own to me. It tested me and stretched me. Not just with words but with people. The drama here is unparalleled and so is the community. Lovers finding each other, soul mates becoming one and just having what could more or less be a dream away.

Forever and always, I will be grateful to @belemo for making all that possible. I maintain that I would never leave Hive. I’m too much in love with this world here (and the people) to do that. I hope I get to bring my kids here and their kids.

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