Great Minty Raid
1st Anniversary

For maximum immersion, please enjoy this website while listening to the FINAL FANTASY VII
Main Theme (or any applicable cover/remix). Ensure that you are DMCA safe while doing so.

My personal recommendation (NOT DMCA safe): FFVII Main Theme Piano Version

Think of all the people you meet in your lifetime. What if you recognized each of those encounters as irreplicable, once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, and gave them your utmost presence and attention? Literally translated into ichi (one) go (time) ichi (one) e (meeting or encounter), ichi-go ichi-e is an old Japanese proverb that means "one opportunity, one encounter." It can also be interpreted as "for this time only," "never again," and "one chance in a lifetime." In other words, ichi-go ichi-e embodies the philosophy that every moment spent in an encounter should be highly treasured, for it will never occur again.

Ichi-go ichi-e (一期一会) speaks to the idea that no one encounter can ever be recreated: each moment and each convergence of time, space, light, mood, thought, and circumstance is singular and unrepeatable. As such, every encounter should be met with one’s full, attuned senses. Some encounters plant seeds that take root over time, while others change the course of one’s life in a single moment. The term reminds people to cherish any gathering that they may take part in, citing the fact that any moment in life cannot be repeated; even when the same group of people get together in the same place again, a particular gathering will never be replicated, and thus each moment is always a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

One way to consider the transformative weight of single moments is through the famous chaos theory concept of the Butterfly Effect. In other words, any change, no matter how small, ends up triggering completely different circumstances due to a process of amplification. The crucial connection between ichi-go ichi-e and the Butterfly Effect is this: though we never know the final consequences of our actions and decisions, every moment holds an essential value. What you do now will have a unique and totally different result from what you might do at another time.

Ichi-go ichi-e. Serendipity. A chance meeting of a lifetime.
Just like how Cloud fell through the roof of the Sector 5 church in Midgar and met Aerith.

Dear Erin,
Meeting you was the ichi-go ichi-e moment of my lifetime. I went through the raid portal with so many others on that day and I can say that at that exact moment my life was changed. You gave me a new home, new friends and a community where I can truly belong. I think many others would agree if I say at that one moment so many people's lives were changed, some have even said in Discord that meeting you on that day have saved their lives (yes, Steebz's stream saves lives!) or helped them to achieve their dreams, and I believe that those were not exaggerations.

Could I have still met you if I did not jump on that raid? Maybe another time through another raid from another streamer? The only answer is "perhaps", it could have still happened, yet it also could have not happened. But understanding about ichi-go ichi-e made me really appreciate that moment, I feel blessed by it and I am just very thankful and grateful that it happened.

I am very happy to see that you have grown in confidence and self-belief during the past year. I still remember that in the early days after the Great Raid, you keep saying that you didn't deserve all this and it was all because Bri sent us to you, and we had to keep telling you "Bri might have sent us through but you made all of us stay" (which led to the No U emote). Believe me when I say that you deserve all of this and more. Your stream and community returned my faith in others and made me believe that there is still room for love, kindness and positivity in this world.

You also made me believe that Twitch can be a wonderful and welcoming place to be. I've met so many wonderful streamers and communities after I met you. Truly, meeting you was not the end, but merely the beginning of a long journey and there will still be so many wonderful things ahead of us. SteebzCon hasn't even happened yet during this past year and I'm really looking forward to that. You once said that you're unsure about SteebzCon because you think only about 10 people will show up. Well, when it finally happens one day, let's see how many people will come, all the people whose lives have been made infinitely better by meeting and knowing you.

I know the past year wasn't all smooth sailing. There were so many ups and downs, and I could see that what happened last month hit you really hard. But during that time, I kept remembering the quote from The Last of Us, "When you're lost in the darkness, look for the light." For so long, you have been the light in our community, you helped people rise up from their darkness, helped them face their problems so that they are able to stand on their feet again. And the fruits of what you have planted have never been more apparent than last month: when you were the one in the dark, the light of our community shone the brightest and the outpouring of love and support for you were just truly marvelous. And it truly showed so many people who Erin Steeby really is: a strong, kind and loving person who cares about so many and is in turn cared by so many.

I am looking forward to finally meeting you one day and tell you in person how grateful I am to have known you. Thank you Erin, for the very memorable year that you have shared together with all of us and here's to many more wonderful years in your future. Cheers!

P.S: Special shoutout to Dreamerme for making it happen a year ago. You're the best! ♥