Little did I know just what exciting as well as scary stuff was waiting for all us Bizzy Bees in the Hive when I wrote my very first Hive blog, Fishing Tales down South, having just returned from a week long care-free holiday in the Western Cape exactly a year ago.
Something else I didn't know was just how our world was about to change with the Coronavirus outbreak.
Here in South Africa we were starting to hear of the odd Covid cases, but those were few and far between; naturally we were not happy to hear our president announce that we would go into a hard lockdown on midnight of 26 March 2020 for 21 days, although that period ended up being extended to around 10 weeks as Covid cases started rising!
The only businesses that could continue operating were food manufacturers, pharmacies and those offering essential services.
Tourism was particularly hard hit and as that is the sector our BnB mainly catered for, we had to close our doors, which was devastating to say the least.
We could only accommodate essential workers but had to apply for a permit. The threat of Covid with health care workers was the deciding factor however, so our doors remained closed.
Hive gave me hope however and we survived that hard lockdown, which eventually killed many large hotels and other businesses!
On 20 March 2020 a Blockchain War broke out and history tells us that Hive was the victor!
During our hard lockdown, Hive came to the rescue as my kitty doubled with the hardfork, and even though I wanted to hold onto all of that, I was forced to start powering down and sell some of my Hive.
This was a lifesaver enabling us to keep our heads above water while waiting out the hard lockdown which lasted some ten weeks.
Quite magical that I started receiving my weekly Hive earnings just a week after our lockdown which carried me through that period.
I learned how to turn my Crypto earnings into rands and cents with the help of fellow Hiveans.
Hive not only helped me financially, but the interaction and engagement with awesome Hiveans was priceless and kept me sane during very difficult and lonely times.
I had my close family but was missing social interaction with friends and my Hive friends became a lifeline.
I joined a couple of really awesome Hive Communities who do a sterling job of curating posts and encouraging newbies.
I have to add at this point, check out a Community before you join as I got my fingers burnt just this week by an abusive community.
Sad but true, here on Hive it's much like the outside world where one finds those who abuse the system and bully newcomers!
I am happy to say that this thankfully is a rare occurrence, so do your research and join a friendly community where you and your content would be a good fit!
Back to Covid lockdown; my son found himself stuck in Russia for four months as they went into lockdown plus all international flights were stopped; very trying times for Mother Hen as you can imagine. However reading about other Hiveans in a similar position helped me feel not so alone.
He eventually returned on a repatriation flight, which was a costly affair I have to add, and then I dug into my Hive earnings for the last time.
Today our Lily's Cottage is flourishing again and even though we're facing a possible third Covid wave we are not concerned as we have adjusted our marketing strategy with most of our guests now coming for business although the leisure guests are slowly returning.
BUT I believe the magic of Hive is the many diverse communities working together.
Hive certainly is here for the long run!
It's about learning to Dance in the Rain.
That is exactly what Hive has taught me, not to wait for things to happen,
but to make it happen by dancing in the rain!
This has been my response to a Twitter challenge by @traciyork and @hivechat:
@enginewitty is sweetening up the pot by adding 100 HIVE in rewards!
Check out his blog - Hive is 1 year old - for the guidelines.
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Original Content by @lizelle
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