I bet it was weird that I've suddenly been really active, huh? After that endless stretch of inactivity. Well, it's been a while hasn't it? Over the past year, really, was when my activity on scratch began to decline. I guess I owe an explanation as to why that's the case, but there really isn't one single reason. This year has just been super busy. I've had a lot of offline things to focus on, like sports, musical, and classes (I'm procrastinating on two projects and a test as I write this). But honestly, it's been one of the best years of my life since Covid. It feels like everything's settling again. I still love drawing and animating, and it's not like I'm going to give that up but I want to live life outside of Scratch too. I have bigger ambitions now: I want to write, get better at running, and work on acting and singing. It's funny. A couple years ago I was watching people move on and promising to myself that I would never leave, and here we are. Yes, I'm leaving. Not the best 5th year scratchiversary, but this decision is a year overdue anyways. Scratch, again, is very different than it once was. I'm not even talking about pre-Covid, because I wasn't here at the time. The change from 2020 to now is pretty drastic. I do think a lot of things here are going downhill and there are far too many political things being discussed here than there should be. I'm not saying I disagree with claims made and I will not be stating any of my opinions on these fragile matters but I am a firm believer that politics and controversial topics should be kept off a kid's website. Along with that, the quality of site moderation has declined severely. I've seen spam of stuff that is highly inappropriate for anyone as young as 12 should be seeing, and it's unfortunate. And finally, my mental health. I started out on Scratch like any other kid (at least, any other kid in 2020). Creating projects, learning how to code, and having fun. I found my niche, my hobby, which was art and animation. I loved it so much, I didn't know how to limit myself. I would spend whole days in front of a screen, drawing, wasting away. It was unhealthy, to say the least. Somewhat of an obsession. There were a lot of people I admired, and still admire to this day. I wanted to be just like them. I wanted to be able to "effortlessly" pump out work without a doubt about motivation and always get the attention I craved. That was a very bad mindset, making art and animations for fame. I would spend so much time feeling bitter and not good enough - over what? Electronic love and attention. It made animation feel more like a chore than a hobby. "Just make on more MAP part and people will finally notice me," "Join this collab because people are more likely to see it" etc. I don't really know when that switch happened. A year, two ago? It doesn't matter. Because one thing I've learned is that you don't have to be seen to be good. The amount of attention you receive does not equate your talent and skill. It's not about fame, popularity, likes, or views. It's about enjoying your hobbies, about creating, learning, and finding things you love. Don't waste years feeling jealous of people who you don't even know. It's ok not to go big. Better, even. I didn't. I never even hit 1k followers, and to be frank, I don't care that much anymore. That much attention will get to your head. I've had the fortune to never experience that, but I do believe the countless others who have struggled with it. It's been a great 5 years. I've been a part of so many communities, met so many great people, and learned so much. Scratch has been a big part of my life (in fact, it's taken up 1/3 of it for you math geeks), but I think it's finally time to let go and free myself of this cage and obligation of goodbye. I'm still going to participate in Artfight, and maybe on yt or other sites, but my time on here is over. This account will probably be lost to the pits of the internet, but I'd like to think that a few people will still remember me. And I'll remember you. To: And all the other friends I've made here. Whether not listed or lost to time. I'm gonna miss you guys. Best of luck in the future! Signing out <3 May 3, 2020 - May 17, 2025 Song - Safe and Sound by Capital Cities
