A Day in the Life by rocketemily |  |
I've spent a lot of my time on NeoPets trying to be the best in everything:
well trained pets, huge shop, big NeoHome, lots of NP, high scores in games.
It didn't work. I've learned that NeoPets isn't about making a million NP in
a week, getting high scores in every game possible, or winning fifty rounds
a day in the Battledome. It's not about owning every rare item, having a size
1500 shop, or showing off your success to the other Neopians. It's about having
fun with your pets.
The other day, I was talking to my friend online. She's only been on NeoPets
for a few months, compared to my 22 months, so I was helping her out. During
the time we were talking, she got a Faerie Quest. "Hey, that's cool," I said,
and told her what to do. Two minutes after she gave the item to the faerie,
she got another quest. "Lucky you," said poor questless me, and waited for her
to get that item to the faeries. Then she got the third quest right after that,
and I was getting a bit mad. She had three quests in the course of about a half-hour,
and I had none. Totally unfair, I thought. Add that to the fact that she wins
Neopoints, fruit and PetPets galore from the Fruit Machine, while all I'd ever
won from it was one measly Tchea fruit, and I was feeling a bit behind.
Then I came to think--she only has about 10,000 Neopoints. She's pretty limited
on what she can buy, and her pets aren't trained enough to win much of anything
in the Battledome. She doesn't know her way around Neopia yet, and still has
a lot to learn. (No offence meant, my friend...) I, on the other hand, can afford
pretty much anything I want (although if I bought more than a few ultra rare
items, I'd be out of money), and I know just about everything about Neopia.
Why should I be worrying about how much I own, how much money I have, or how
much I win? I have four wonderful pets that I love, a nice NeoHome, and enough
money to keep me going. My pets each have their own PetPet, they all have toys,
and I keep them well fed. Nothing is more important than making sure your pets
are happy. I don't have a gallery, I don't have a huge shop, and I don't own
a guild. All of this isn't going to keep your pets any happier. I felt a lot
better about my Neopian life.
Then I got a Neomail from my friend. She'd found a Paint Brush and a Codestone,
and she'd won another PetPet from the Fruit Machine. I reminded myself of how
winning things like that isn't necessary, but the frustration welled up anyway.
Why is everyone luckier than me, anyway? I don't have millions of Neopoints,
I don't own any really rare items, my pets don't have lots of abilities and
don't have high levels. I try to train my pets as often as I can at the Training
School or the Academy, but I can never catch up to the rest.
All this was running through my head as I went to the games room to play for
a while, earn some NP. I tried out a new game, eager to get another score added
to my list of game scores. "Hey, this is pretty fun," I thought. I ended up
earning 14 whole Neopoints from the game.
I burst out laughing. Who cares whether I have the best-trained pets, the
biggest shop, or the most NP? I'm having fun. My pets are happy, and you know
what? So am I. |
