Being in Splinterlands has really been such a trip. I've mentioned it a few times, but the game was my introduction to cryptocurrency. An entire world and way of thinking of currency, governance, and censorship, entered via the lens of Baakjira and Aganju, opportunity and snipe.
I didn't plan on posting anything today, or on reflecting whatsoever on my experience with the game, but my friend @azircon found a funny nugget in his regular dive of Hive and SPS data - today, I happen to sit at the median of staked sps, providing the symmetry in an otherwise beautifully asymmetrical distribution of staked holders.
(image courtesy of @azircon and his quest for Splinterlands players to build their Hive stake)
When I was new to the ecosystem, only here for a few weeks, and accepted into the Shield of Glory guild, I remember feeling completely like a fish out of water. People in SoG had vouchers, for Christ's sake. Thousands of them! I looked at some of their holdings and thought, 'well, I'm never going to approach this level of participation... I just don't see how they'll keep me.'
Of course, like a lot of people relatively new to and inexperienced with investing, I ended up not waiting all that long before I completely aped in. I think I said in my validator node post a couple weeks ago, Splinterlands felt completely infectious then, in 2021/22, in the best possible way. When the bottom fell out at the end of that year, I committed another investing sin - I was too emotionally attached to the game, my friends, and my holdings to even think about cutting my losses. But by staying, I witnessed and participated in the staying power of a dedicated community. I witnessed and participated in the growth of video game governance. I also realized that it's okay to be wrong, and that I'm probably going to be wrong a lot in this space, and that being wrong is a great way to grow.
Today, symmetrically with AZ's findings, I feel much more balanced in the ecosystem, and much more at peace. If I'm being honest, though, it's hard to not feel as though we're on the cusp of so many exciting things in Splinterlands. I think those of us who have been here for a few years or more are trying not to get ahead of ourselves, but a lot of great things have been released (Survival mode, the SPS Chain and Validator Nodes), a lot of great things are literally just around the corner (land 1.75, Conclave Arcana), and there are things happening right under the surface, right now (a pretty amazing marketing campaign, constant development tweaks and improvements, vanishing card liquidity in certain areas (!)). And those are just the things I can recall off the top of my head!
I have no idea what's going to happen, but I'm so thrilled that I'm still here and that I'm right in the middle of things. Where I should be.