Potatoes undeniably come in a delectable smorgasbord of different forms and flavors, all of which I take great pleasure in consuming. Mashed potatoes, baked potatoes, fries, potato chips, and even pixel potatoes? Here me out now. Although pixel potatoes do not immediately sound appetizing, I assure you that these potatoes hold a special place in my heart. Pixel potatoes saturate my soul, and it’s all thanks to Minecraft—a hallmark game of my childhood.
It’s 2018, and I just got home from an excruciatingly boring day of 3rd grade. Little scrawny me immediately sinks into the trusty couch for which I have always found comfort and reliability. Homework? Already finished that in school. Play outside? It’s too cold for that. In reality, I was just prowling for excuses to get my hands on the family iPad and play some good old survival Minecraft. Loading into the world, exploring abandoned structures, and traversing different biomes all brought solace to my hyperactive 8-year-old self back in the day. Nothing gave me more serenity than farming, though. Carving out farmland in my pixel world to plant potatoes was me unknowingly sculpting and planting the seeds of nostalgia for which I still cherish dearly to this day. Harvesting and making baked potatoes in my virtual world also satisfied my childhood nostalgia to the brim.
To this day, Minecraft lurks among the files of my laptop. Although the decrepit game’s playtime gets less and less attention from me, a teenager juggling school and other activities, the memories do not fade. Minecraft not only inspires me to find beauty in seemingly insignificant things, like cultivating a farm, but also serves as the key to my childhood lost in time and sentimentality. So every time I experience a sudden and unexplained surge of longing, I have my mind keep a firm grip on pixel potatoes—forever fulfilling yet intangible.