#MyWord: When a hobby becomes a source of livelihood

In uncertain times, men, women and even children with the weight of responsibility on their shoulders, lie awake at night, racking their brains for ideas, solutions and possibilities. They toss and turn in their beds, wondering what will happen in the morning.

But it is in these same difficult times that the best ideas have been birthed. When people instinctively turn to what they know best to give them some security and safety. It is human nature, and indeed the nature of all living things, to go back ‘home’ when things look risky.

And home can be a lot of things for different people and in different situations. Home is where you find love, where you came from, where you started from -- whether decades ago or in the morning. It’s the place where you find rest and restoration, where you freshen up and start again in the morning. It’s the place you go to find affirmation and inspiration. Where you go to find the people who make you want to go out and try again.

Home is also what is familiar, what you know how to do best. What you love to do. What you choose to do when you want to take a break from regular activities. The thing you do when you want to retreat and restrategise.

In a way, hobbies are like a home. Your hobby has been perfected over time, you discovered it in a time when you needed it the most. You found happiness and comfort in your hobby and you go to it whenever you want to find rest and restoration.

But in uncertain times, you retreat to your hobby and it is suddenly no longer a place for rest and restoration but your only place for survival. A source of much needed income and a way to keep your sanity.

Suddenly, home is no longer just a roof over your head but a fortress in the middle of a battlefield. You have to fight to keep it safe from attack and build more walls around it. Suddenly, it is a business that needs to be kept alive.

Christine Koech, Editor, Eve