In the long run, it leads to exactly what I never wanted: Steem being ruled by " one" reputable curator.

I think we all love you for that. (:

Thankfully, I can also say that I wasn't in the game like most people are. (For this I give the credit to friends like you, the-gorilla and o1eh). I had my knees down in every other project because of my own addiction and love for Steem. It didn't affect me (when I didn't get big votes) like it affected most people. When I made the decision to step down, I wasn't sad for cutting down my big votes, I was sad for leaving my friends and the small loyal community that I built for myself over time. If it were only for votes, I'd have stayed here, ignoring my mental health and kept saying yes to anything that was coming my way. Instead, I left at my high time because it was overwhelming.

I think it's a blessing that we joined Steemit when it was relatively new. Because when I joined, there was no one to guide. I was also skeptical that it could make money for real. Infact, I was told it's almost impossible to earn here, so it was just another website where I wrote. Started it for fun and didn't let my expectations rise even when the rewards started coming in.

Now that I've come back - I'm at a better place. So not in the game. It's liberating.

You can ask Hira what plans we had for the "NO community" that never materialised...

I'm still up for it. ;-)