As a Steemian of now 14 moons and a full-time father of two and loving hubs of @randfmomma, I can identify the value of family and see that loyalty, trust, and love are absolutely priceless. Hard to find and increasingly rare in our current times without the right people around. Good people, that is. People who operate from compassion and care are whom I am speaking of.

I'm a family man

I have come to know how hard it can be to sustain dedication to things that seem to have little return. Being a stay-at-home parent doesn't pay and the work really sucks sometimes. But we do not traverse this path for the money or immediate gratification. No, we understand that value we receive comes in many forms and most certainly makes the tough times worth enduring. Family is all we really have that holds us together.

How I heard about #thealliance

I happened to get lucky when my friend @finnian invited me to Steemit and right away I met some great people who really stood out. @Liberty-minded was one of those few that stood out. After creating some graphics for him, I began to look into #thealliance because he was a member. Here's the graphics that I created with him (he is great to work with and knows what he is aiming for):

Having also crossed paths with @jackmiller early in my Steemit journey, once I saw his application hit the wire - I thought to myself: Who better to add than @jackmiller?! He is a prime candidate if there was one.

Character is plenty to judge a man by and he has plenty of that. Few I'd trust with my house keys, Jack is one of them. Worst I'd have to worry about was my fridge missing meatballs and I feel I would have to search for a hilarious note somewhere. That's a good person and they're a rare breed. Easy to find a friend when all is going well, but hard to find good people willing to give theirselves to help out when times 'aint so great'. Time is a precious commodity and I admire anyone who spends it serving people, especially voluntarily, out of the goodness of their heart.

@enginewitty, you've got yourself a great candidate here. If it were me, my 'Have Done' sheet would be a Twitter comment in comparison to what Jack has done in virtually the same period of time (he is just a few weeks ahead of me, beyond 1 year). Hat tip to you for what you've accomplished in building a community and I hope you know that it's a fire under my ass to see you all and what you do. It's inspiring. Let me get to work for a while and maybe get to a level where I might be of value to #thealliance and also the Steemit community alike. ✌️{see full context}

Why do I want to be a part of #thealliance?

First and foremost I must admit that #snookmademedoit. Don't take that the wrong way. I wanted to be a part of The Alliance, however, I was trying to identify what I could bring to the table and offer to the fellow Alliance members.

Then, I was bamboozled by a wall of text from @snook that really made my day. I must say that #snookmademedoit and with her guiding, colorful delivery, evenly paired with the appropriate amount of threats and compliments, really opened my eyes.

What do I have to offer?

Myself. That comes bundled with respect for my fellow human, ridiculous humor, oddly paired skills, creative energy, and sometimes expletives but not around the kids Circling back to being respectful. I value respect and I try to respect everyone until they give me a reason not to. I am the very same way with trust and loyalty.

These things mean a great deal to me and anyone that goes back through my entire post list can see that I have expressed this intensely and verbosely since joining Steemit in June of 2017.
I try to offer everything I have and if #thealliance family finds what I have to be of utility - I am happy to assist. I always try to be of value in my community because people are what binds this great space and make the entire experience what it is. I am here for a better experience and I am willing to put forth the effort to ensure that it becomes just that for more people who use Steemit. @Snook made me realize that we all have something to offer and also that I'd have cinderblock shoes, swimming with the fish if I did not go forward with my application process. I do have a lot to offer and I am grateful to have good folks around me to remind me of that when I forget.

My reasoning for not having applied to date is simple (and semi-ridiculous): I was concerned that I had nothing to give and therefore​ no reason to receive anything from #thealliance.

It is not so much that #snookmademedoit, but more like #snookmademerealize that we are who we are and we all have something to offer.

The little things often mean the most and that is something I tend to forget. She really made my day and also made me realize that I have done a bunch and never kept tabs. Just functioning out of compassion and care, voluntarily. Isn't very similar to how families operate?

My kids don't owe me for lunch today and we don't keep tabs. This is how I operate and that I suppose might come in handy for those that I share my time with, in any capacity.
Now, I will also fair warn that my good pal @jackmiller should not be in the sandbox unaccompanied, he needs his buddy @grow-pro. We can spark up a sandbox like you've never seen.

I truly hope that The Alliance Family will consider my application and afford me the opportunity to enhance my experience, as well as the experience of others while being part of something greater.