One of the most difficult things about telling stories is that it can be impossible to find the right words; one of the best things about telling stories is that there always seems to be someone else out there who can articulate what I can't.
From kindergarten through, well, about 2:40 this afternoon, people made fun of me for being a nerd (for liking pro wrestling, for loving books, for doing theatre, and on and on). For the longest time, the taunting bothered me. Then, suddenly...it didn't. Not only was I comfortable with myself, but I was happy to advertise my passions to others. Except once that happened, I wasn't sure how to express that contentment. So with the utmost gratitude, I defer to Wil Wheaton (Stand By Me, Star Trek: The Next Generation, The Big Bang Theory) to explain the joy of being exactly who you are. The following is his response to an expectant mother asking, at a comic convention, what it means to be a nerd:
“My name is Wil Wheaton. It’s 2013. And you’ve just recently joined us on planet Earth. So welcome. I’m an actor. I’m a writer. And I’m a Dad. Your mother asked me to tell you why it’s awesome to be a nerd. That’s an easy thing for me to do because I am a nerd.
I don’t know what the world is going to be like by the time you understand this. I don’t what it’s going to mean to be a nerd when you are a young woman. For me, when I was growing up, being a nerd meant that I liked things that were a little weird. That took a lot of effort to appreciate and understand. It meant that I loved science, and that I loved playing board games, and reading books...
and really understanding what went on in the world instead of just riding the planet through space.
When I was a little boy, people really teased us about that, and made us feel like there was something wrong with us for loving those things. Now that I’m an adult, I’m kind of a professional nerd, and the world has changed a lot. I think a lot of us have realized that being a nerd … it’s not about what you love. It’s about how you love it.
So there’s going to be a thing in your life that you love, and I don’t know what it’s going to be. It might be sports, it might be science, it might be reading, it might be fashion design, it might be building things, it might be telling stories [YES!!!] or taking pictures. It doesn’t matter what it is.
The way you love that, and the way that you find other people who love it the way you do, is what makes being a nerd awesome. The way you love that, and the way that you find other people who love it the way you do is what makes you a nerd. The defining characteristic of [being a nerd] is that we love things. Some of us love Firefly and some of us love Game of Thrones, or Star Trek, or Star Wars, or anime, or games, or fantasy, or science fiction. Some of us love completely different things. But we all love those things SO much that we travel for thousands of miles … we come from all over the world, so that we can be around people who love the things the way that we love them.
That’s why being a nerd is awesome. And don’t let anyone tell you that that thing that you love is a thing that you can’t love. Don’t anyone ever tell you that you can’t love that, that’s for boys … you find the things that you love, and you love them the most that you can.
And listen: This is really important. I want you to be honest, honorable, kind. I want you to work hard. Because everything worth doing is hard.
And I want you to be awesome, and I will do my very best to leave you a planet that you can still live on."
Thanks, Wil. Couldn't have said it better myself.
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