my safe zone on the screen

By: Steve Garcia

As a kid Video games meant a lot to me especially when I have a long day at school. I get home and I go straight to my computer to play video games. Like GTA, COD and fortnite. Video games help me when I feel stressed or when I get bored. Me and my friends love to play after school or during the weekends we stay up all night playing and having fun.

 One day after school I got home and I wanted to try playing a game on my computer. I loaded up GTA then after I started trying Call of Duty and Fortnite. I didn’t think much of it at the first but it slowly started becoming part of my life. And  every day after school I would turn on my PC and start playing, and for the first time in a while I felt like I had something to look forward to.

Video games became my main way to chill and rest. When I was stressed or frustrated, gaming was the one thing that helped. As soon as I put on my headset, everything else like school, homework, and problems went away for a bit. And I had a space where I could be me and be happy. 

What made it even better was playing with my friends. After school on weekends we would stay up late talking, laughing and playing together. We would joke around in game chat scream when something crazy happened, or hype each other up when we won. Even though we were all at our own houses it felt like we were hanging out. 

Some of my best memories are from the late night games where we were tired and still playing because we were having too much fun. 

Over time I realized video games aren't just a hobby, it became something that made me who I am now. It helped me with stress and made me feel closer to my friends. Even now when life gets hard or difficult gaming is the one thing that always makes me happy.

As I get older I want to continue playing video games when I get bored or when I feel stressed. This is something I'm always going to have with me and never have a problem with.