I used to tape my curtains shut so I wouldn’t have to see outside my bedroom.
Video games were basically my entire life growing up.
And somehow, I turned that into my job.
Now I literally make money playing games…
but after a few hours, I usually want to stop.
For a while, I thought I was losing my passion for them.
But I think something else happened.
My life got bigger than my bedroom.
School ends yet again, I can finally go home and play video games.
I run home and immediately throw my school bag on the floor as I hop on my computer…
I say hello to my friends and we start to play all day…
…
It’s dark outside, but I really don’t want to stop playing, I know I won’t get much sleep but I need to do this…
I’m spending 12 hours some weekends just playing, even though I should be studying.
One day though I’m in bed after a day of school…
Father, I’m sick. I can’t go to football practice…
Honestly don’t want to play sports today, I just want to rest and play video games…
…
Door opens…
Father!
He just looks at me with an angry expression and closes the door…
He saw me only with underwear sitting on my computer playing games…
Damn, I wish my parents would understand that I really just love being at home and playing games…
Maybe I should quit football so I have more time for games…
…
Summer vacation starts… this is the best time of my life!
I’m hopping on my computer. Instead of going outside and enjoying the warm weather after a long hard winter… the only thing I cared about was the amount of time that I could just stay up all night and play.
It’s 6 AM. I’ve been playing all night with my friends, and I can see the sun through the blinds…
this is the worst… Now I have to hear the birds chirping and I can barely sleep.
…
I wake up at 5 PM. My father looks at me walk out my bedroom and just said…
Had a good night?
I respond positively… I guess my dad doesn’t care as long as I get good grades at school. But during the summer break I can do whatever the hell I want…
After eating “breakfast” at nearly 6 PM…
I decide to get a bit of tape from my dads closet and close my curtains…
Tape the edges of it to the wall…
And now, it’s almost completely dark in my room.
Now, I can play games all night and just relax…
I think I’m just a Night Owl. I prefer the darkness and I’m just introverted, so I don’t need to go outside and meet people.
Just my type of lifestyle…
I’m playing games for a living now…
I decided to become a gaming YouTuber to help my mother, who was constantly exhausted from working.
So now… I’m playing games and making videos out of them for 12 hours a day…
This is just perfect, so so perfect.
I again, close the curtains. Tape them shut and just work…
And it works. I earn so much money I can barely believe it. I really must be dreaming.
So now, I never have to leave my house…
I can play with my friends and do whatever…
And I can help my mother.
I come up from my room at 3 PM. My dad starts to talk about it…
Alex, I know you like being awake at night. But please fix your sleep schedule…
I don’t really care about that. I love working at night…
Alex! We should travel to South Africa, you deserve a break!
Hmm, yeah I have been working for a few years now just playing games…
Let me travel to this new place…
I tell him I’ll go. And I don’t think much about it.
…
Oh my god! Look at this place! Full of crime and guns and violence!
My dad tells me…
Alex, you haven’t been there have you? You haven’t seen the whole story, you first need to experience it.
I know my dad has been there seventeen times. But I’m not blind.
Am I going to die down there in South Africa?
…
We’re driving to this massive lagoon with a village next to it. This is something so beautiful…
I ended up talking to some people selling ice cream there…
And they were so nice and happy, so open.
…
Then at the village next to this lagoon…
I sit down and this older couple comes in.
I ask them if they needed help with the menu.
Thank you! What’s your name?
We ended up speaking… until I glance over at the sky…
I arrived here when the sun was still high…
and now, it is completely dark.
…
I’m walking into the restaurant to pay and there are even more people there.
Asking me for my name, how Europe is and whatnot…
My god, I love Europe but I just love being here and talking to you!
My voice was hurting when me and my father were driving home, because I had talked to much…
Wait.
If I’m naturally someone who wants to stay inside and avoid people…
why am I enjoying this so much?
See son! I knew you would like it here. Not like what you saw online hah!
Hmm I guess he’s right… so far.
…
In the end, I had talked more in 2 weeks than years back at home…
And I’m thinking…
Why do I have to go home? I just wanna stay here…
For the first time in probably a decade…
I thought to myself…
I’ve barely thought about my computer or games this trip.
I thought I knew how the vacation would go based on the bad news I saw from my bedroom…
But I never thought that the things I would experience was something I simply couldn’t read or think about from my bedroom.
I’m sitting down in my bedroom and touch my keyboard and mouse for the first time in weeks…
Damn… I have to get back to playing games and have to make a new video.
But… I just wanna go back and talk to people…
I want to enjoy the lovely sun…
and experience the nature.
…
Eventually I start to do things that I can control, outside of vacations…
I’m going to the gym…
I pick up books and read…
I start to play the piano that I had abandoned for years…
Go out for walks…
to enjoy the nature that had been outside my window for years.
Talk to random people and give out compliments everywhere. Just like in South Africa.
My family…
they tell me that I’ve never been more happier or talkative and that I spend more time with them.
Eventually, I build this business where I help people reinterpret their lives through stories…
And all of the sudden, my whole life involves tiny experiences that literally mean me having to go outside, and travel.
Video games didn’t become less fun. Other parts of life became more meaningful.
I’m playing games with my friends…
I’ve decided that I only play on Saturdays…
I love it, I never stopped loving video games.
But I tell them…
If I spend all week playing video games… It will prevent me from living the life I currently want to build.
I could become so addicted and play all week, but I simply can’t.
And they respect it…
now we all look forward to the one day that we play.
…
I’m sitting at my computer, ready to record my gaming videos for four hours…
As I get into it, I start thinking about my books…
I’m thinking about the piano piece I’m learning….
Oh my god, the places I want to travel to…
I’m literally daydreaming and escaping my video games. When I used to escape my life to just focus on the games.
Now, while I’m playing… I look at the sun shining on the trees.
I can’t believe I used to tape my curtains shut so I wouldn’t have to see the wonderful world outside.
Looking back, I thought I was growing out of video games.
But I don’t think I was.
I still love games.
I still love being alone sometimes.
And I still spend a ridiculous amount of time in this room.
But this room used to contain almost everything I wanted from life.
Now it doesn’t.
I didn’t stop loving what was inside my bedroom.
I just discovered how much life existed outside of it.
The richer my life became, the less I needed one thing to fill it.