Welcome to Gaia! :: View User's Journal | Gaia Journals

Not only have I come back to Gaia...but I ended up re-joining another website as well: "Legend of the Green Dragon".
So, FUN FACT: I started playing LotGD when I was 11-years-old...and as an all-text RPG it was my first introduction to role-playing. That website...the people on it and all the drama that ensued...that was my LIFE all the way through high-school.

I think it's crazy...looking back at it now.
I remember when there were rumors about the site shutting down and my friends and I had an emergency meeting on what we could do to try and save it. I remember we all sat on a 4-way call and a few of us were crying and talking about how we would spend those final days. Then the site never even shut down and we celebrated because we felt like some miracle had happened.

There are still moments from that game that were so profound to me...like when I was made an Officer of the Guild I was in, and then when I was given the title of Leader. I remember the war between Guilds and the Sith which were big villains at the time. I remember playing both sides with many ALT characters...and there are just so many moments that really helped me develop my writing skills...and also develop me as a person. Like Gaia, LotGD was a place where I could play with my identity. I could express myself in ways that my real life would not allow: romance, sex, conflict...even sexuality at times. It was all very important.

But after high-school...the site began dying. People grew up, had families...people left. There really was no 'appeal' to the game after a certain point, especially after one had already killed the Green Dragon a hundred or more times. Without people, the role-playing all but halted. Responses in the Gardens would disappear before anyone even logged in to see them.
I remember moving to Germany, logging in, trying to breathe some life back into the site in some way...and then making the hard choice to finally let my main character of 10+ years fade into oblivion...taking the Guild with her,

That character had so many memories...and letting her go was hard. But it was this site that also showed me that sometimes people can not separate fantasy-from-reality. I mean, it was not like I was not aware of this being a thing considering the fact that I used to be one of those people. I guess it just really hit me when a Facebook Group was made for the hardcore players of the site. My friend (who I introduced to the game) had been invited into the group...but I never received an invitation. When asked why, the Admin of the group said it was because my character was not liked among the other members.

I was insulted...I mean, in the past I had been a child that was brand-new to the world of role-playing. I was attention-mongering and did things that I now know go against role-playing etiquette. But to judge my person after 10+ years from a character that I was just learning how to handle and become? Guess it really hit me how 'real' that site was for some people. I was eventually let into the group and people told me to just let my character die since her reputation was tarnished far beyond redemption. It took me a few years...but eventually I saw their point, and I gave into their request.

But now I'm back in that world. There are some familiar faces, some newbies...and the site is empty as ever. I still wonder why I bothered going back...but only time will tell me what it is I am looking for in this place. I just thought that it was something interesting to think and ponder on is all.