Node.js mongoose unable to 'save()' a document on MongoDB database - node.js

Question

My problem is quite peculiar, as I believe to have done everything "by the book".
I'm able to successfully connect to a MongoDB cluster I've created through MongoDB Atlas. When I make a 'POST' request to save a choice that was picked from an array of choices, I successfully create a document through the Model specified below. I then try to save that document to MongoDB by calling the 'save()' method, but it hangs and nothing comes out of it (even if I use a 'catch' to see if any errors occurred).
I'm completely lost as to what is wrong, and what I need to do to solve this. I was hoping you could give me some pointers.
MongoDB connection, schema, and model:
const mongoose = require('mongoose');
const URL = process.env.MONGODB_URL;
mongoose.connect(URL, { useNewUrlParser: true, useUnifiedTopology: true })
.then(() => {
console.log('Successfully connected to our MongoDB database.');
}).catch((error) => {
console.log('Could not connect to our MongoDB database.', error.message);
});
const choicesMadeSchema = new mongoose.Schema({
allChoices: Array,
pickedChoice: String
});
const ChoiceMade = mongoose.model('ChoiceMade', choicesMadeSchema);
module.exports = ChoiceMade; // Exports our 'ChoiceMade' constructor, to be used by other modules.
index.js:
/* 1 - Setting things up */
require('dotenv').config();
const express = require('express');
const server = express();
const PORT = process.env.PORT;
const parserOfRequestBody = require('body-parser');
server.use(parserOfRequestBody.json());
/* 2 - Retrieving all the data we need from our 'MongoDB' database */
// Imports the 'mongoose' library, which will allow us to easily interact with our 'MongoDB' database.
const mongoose = require('mongoose');
// Imports our 'ChoiceMade' constructor.
const ChoiceMade = require('./database/database.js');
// Will hold the five latest choices that have been made (and thus saved on our 'MongoDB' database).
let fiveLatestChoicesMade;
// Retrieves the five latest choices that have been made (and thus saved on our 'MongoDB' database).
ChoiceMade.find({}).then((allChoicesEverMade) => {
const allChoicesEverMadeArray = allChoicesEverMade.map((choiceMade) => {
return choiceMade.toJSON();
});
fiveLatestChoicesMade = allChoicesEverMadeArray.slice(allChoicesEverMadeArray.length - 5).reverse();
console.log("These are the five latest choices that have been made:", fiveLatestChoicesMade);
mongoose.connection.close();
});
/* 3 - How the server should handle requests */
// 'GET' (i.e., 'retrieve') requests
server.get('/allChoicesMade', (request, response) => {
console.log("This is the data that will be sent as a response to the 'GET' request:", fiveLatestChoicesMade);
response.json(fiveLatestChoicesMade);
});
// 'POST' (i.e., 'send') requests
server.post('/allChoicesMade', (request, response) => {
const newChoiceMadeData = request.body;
if (Object.keys(newChoiceMadeData).length === 0) {
return response.status(400).json({ error: "No data was provided." });
}
const newChoiceMade = new ChoiceMade({
allChoices: newChoiceMadeData.allChoices,
pickedChoice: newChoiceMadeData.pickedChoice
});
console.log("This is the new 'choice made' entry that we are going to save on our 'MongoDB' database:", newChoiceMade); // All good until here
newChoiceMade.save().then((savedChoiceMade) => {
console.log('The choice that was made has been saved!');
response.json(savedChoiceMade);
mongoose.connection.close();
}).catch((error) => {
console.log('An error occurred:', error);
});
});
/* 4 - Telling the server to 'listen' for requests */
server.listen(PORT, () => {
console.log("Our 'Express' server is running, and listening for requests made to port '" + PORT + "'.");
});
SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM
In my code's section 2, I was mistakenly closing the connection upon retrieving all the data I need to make my app work. I was doing this (...)
// Retrieves the five latest choices that have been made (and thus saved on our 'MongoDB' database).
ChoiceMade.find({}).then((allChoicesEverMade) => {
const allChoicesEverMadeArray = allChoicesEverMade.map((choiceMade) => {
return choiceMade.toJSON();
});
fiveLatestChoicesMade = allChoicesEverMadeArray.slice(allChoicesEverMadeArray.length - 5).reverse();
console.log("These are the five latest choices that have been made:", fiveLatestChoicesMade);
mongoose.connection.close(); // This should not be here!!!
});
(...) when I should be doing
// Retrieves the five latest choices that have been made (and thus saved on our 'MongoDB' database).
ChoiceMade.find({}).then((allChoicesEverMade) => {
const allChoicesEverMadeArray = allChoicesEverMade.map((choiceMade) => {
return choiceMade.toJSON();
});
fiveLatestChoicesMade = allChoicesEverMadeArray.slice(allChoicesEverMadeArray.length - 5).reverse();
console.log("These are the five latest choices that have been made:", fiveLatestChoicesMade);
// Now that I don't have mongoose.connection.close(), everything's OK!
});
Basically, and in my particular case, I was closing my connection to the MongoDB database after retrieving data from it, and then trying to add a new record to it when I didn't have a connection to it anymore.