Why Code?

That moment. You know the one.

It’s 2:00 AM and you’ve been banging your head against the problem for hours. You’re exhausted and discouraged, but going to bed with the issue left unresolved is unthinkable. How could you sleep with it just sitting there, not working?

You sigh deeply and jump back into the code; still with no idea how, or even if, you can move forward.

Then it happens. Sometimes it starts as a small spark in the back of your mind. Sometimes - the best times - it’s like a nuclear bomb going off behind your eyes. Inspiration strikes and . . . you see it.

The solution.

It’s clear and perfect and beautiful and it works. Of course it works.

You sit back and smile. All the doubt, anger, and frustration of the previous hours fade away as if they never existed.

Something that was broken is now whole. Something that was just an idea is now a reality. It is a moment of pure joy. Of magic.

That moment.

That is why I’m a programmer.

That is why I code.

Originally posted by me on Medium.com