10 years

 

Hard to believe that 10 years of my life I spent in Second Life. Many hours of exploring, chatting, creating, and discovering. 10 years is a decade of time one never thought of have spent in a virtual world, but yet here I am. It is not a loss of really anything.

The art of losing isn’t hard to master;
so many things seem filled with the intent
to be lost that their loss is no disaster.

People have come and go, some good, some maybe not as good. Some brought joy and some brought heartache. I always try to remember that even the virtual world brings the pain and sorrow we experience in real life because it is all connected.

What have I learned in 10 years being here? 

I find that the majority of people here, including myself have something missing in their real life, and in this virtual world, we can fill that void for a little bit. That is ok because as humans we mostly recognize that something is missing or something is not right. We look for ways to fill that emptiness or sorrow with something. Purposefulness and having a role that matters in our communities validate our existence and gives us feedback that we are important and have value. Acceptance in Second Life often is easier than in real life, so people stay and come back.

Engaging even on just a small scale, short-term activities that temporarily take your focus away from your problems gives your brain a rest from feeling the weight of confusion and frustration you’ve been drowning in.

It is normal to feel lost and confused at some point in your life. What matters is how you face challenges along the way. Whether it is to explore the virtual world of Second Life or some other creative way to fill in that void, by all means, do it, even if you spend 10 years on it.