Networks play a very huge role in most if not all our lives, it refers to social structures made up of nodes (which can be individuals or organizations) that are connected by one or more types of interdependencies, such as values, visions, ideas, financial exchange, friendship, interests, conflict, or trade. These networks help to study relationships between various social actors and understand social outcomes based on these connections. The networks in my life start with the most intimate people in my life, being my family, it then goes to my friends and their families, my neighbors, people who live in the same area as I do, people who use the same transport as I do. I’ve built networks from primary school to high school and to tertiary school (current state of life), and some of those networks are still active, be it networks with previous fellow learners, teachers, lecturers, and even the staff.

There are three types of social networks known as generalized reciprocity, balanced reciprocity, and negative reciprocity. Generalized reciprocity is defined as a type of social exchange where one party gives something of value to another without expecting anything in return. In my life, I would categorize the relationship I have with my family and some of my friends as generalized reciprocity, whether it’s them buying stuff for me, or me doing something of value for them, or visa vera, there’s never an urge to expect something in return, as the motive behind the action is simply pure and expects nothing in return.

Balanced reciprocity is defined as when two people exchange goods, services, assistance, or favors that are more or less of equal value. I would categorize my education, transportation to school, buying from a store, and donating blood as balanced reciprocity. Every time I go and donate blood, I always expect them to give me a thank you gift, and that’s what they always do, and in return they get my blood which evidently helps save someone's life. The other three examples that I mentioned all have to do with money. Money is paid in my name for a specific function, and in return I expect certain services from each example. Unlike generalized reciprocity, with balanced reciprocity you automatically expect something in return.

Negative reciprocity is defined as when one person gets more out of an exchange than the other. One individual clearly benefits more and the other gives more. Exchanges can involve favors, goods, services, or more. The relationships I have with my lecturers are a splendid example of negative reciprocity, because every time we’re in a class and I or another student asks a question and we get a response from the lecturer, the lecturer gives us information, and we take it in, meaning we get more out of the exchange than they do. Another example is the relationship I have with my parents, they continuously cater to my needs, be it something that has to do with school, my health, what I wear, what I eat etc. They do all of them simply because they see it as a necessity, and as their duty, and they currently do not expect anything in return, meaning I am the one that gets more out of the exchange than they do. Something that balanced and negative reciprocity have in common is the possibility of conflict and exploitation taking place.

My day usually starts between 05:30 and 06:30 whether I have a class or not, and this is because I really do not like sleep, I feel like sleep is a waste of time (I know how important it is, but do we really have to sleep?). During the week, my mother wakes up first because she must go to work, I have gotten used to the fact that by 05:50 my mom will be up, and so will I. After the waking up process, I get right into playing music, I am such a sucker for music and it kind of helps with setting the mood for the day. I continue playing music and then go and take a shower and brush my teeth. Sometimes my brother makes an appearance in the house, and he does his own, we usually don’t cross paths in the morning, due to his waking up time and mine.

After all that, I do something that I am both enthusiastic and unenthusiastic about, which is having to pick an outfit, I waste some of my time while picking an outfit. I normally go outside right before I get dressed to get that fresh morning smell (this is done with a gown on) this allows me to thoroughly reset my mind and align myself with the day ahead, I enjoy doing this on my own and treating it as my own little sacred ritual. After going back into the house, I go and get dressed, and then I grab a bite of breakfast depending on whether I`m hungry or not, so it differs daily. Thereafter, once I’m done with packing my bag and helping my mother pack her things into her car, I call my driver, and I notify him that I am ready to go to campus, and this also changes daily as my classes aren’t always at the same time or in the morning.

Right before the driver arrives, I make sure to check that all the windows are closed, and then once he arrives, I simply turn the house alarm on , and then head to campus. I get nervous every time I get to the campus` entrance, so I put on my earphone

my work, these breaks consist of me just leaving my study desk, going to room, and just scrolling through social media. I sometimes light up my sage depending on the day I had, because it`s scent really calms me down, it`s the craziest thing ever. I am not a dinner person, I usually get home in the late afternoon, so I decide to turn my lunch into my dinner.

The final part of my day is getting ready for bed, now this is when I get a chance to pamper myself, I start my moisturizing my hair and making sure that no part of my head is left dry, I then continue to brush my hair just to make sure that all that product gets to do it`s job instead of just leaving stains on my pillows. Thereafter I put my durag on, I wash my hands just so that I can remove all the oils from them, I get a glass of warm water, and head straight to my room. Once I`m in my room, I do not immediately go sleep, I do bible studies for at least 20 minutes, I say my prayer and then I hop straight into bed, and I get on my phone for another 15 minutes. I fall asleep very fast, the moment I put my phone down, head on my pillow, and close my eyes? It`s lights out, and I immediately drift into a fitful doze.