My Hacktoberfest Journey: From “Maybe Later” to “Merge Successful!”
This is a submission for the 2025 Hacktoberfest Writing Challenge: Open Source Reflections
Last year, I registered for Hacktoberfest but never made it past the sign-up page. Between exams, deadlines, and self-doubt, open source felt like a world I’d join “someday.”
This year, I finally decided to stop overthinking and start contributing – and wow, what a ride! I made 6 pull requests, created forks, and even earned the Super Contributor badge, joining the top 10,000 contributors who’ll get the iconic Hacktoberfest shirt.
But beyond badges and swag, this experience taught me something deeper – open source is not just about code; it’s about community, learning, and helping each other grow. Every “small” fix you make contributes to something much bigger.
To anyone thinking about joining next year: just start. Read issues, explore repos, ask questions-the open-source world is more welcoming than you think.
“I came for the T-shirt, stayed for the pull requests!”
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