Two near misses and one bulls-eye
I had some close interactions with nerdifghteria before I actually took part in the crazyness. The first time I saw any Vlogbrothers video was John announcing the fact that he had a disease that can only be caught if you a) Eat feces or b) have a dog that does as such. Not the best introduction. I, sadly, walked away hoping to never looked back. A few months later I glanced at the suggestions list for the Llama song (Here's a Llama, there's a Llama, and another little Llama. etc.) , there I saw the Obama Llama song. I, again, turned tail and ran.
The video that made me want to stay was Hank's Ice Cream changes. After that (Instead of running away in fear of weird) I went far into their past, and found a sort of comfort in the two middle aged men making videos about almost anything. The next day (Or few, things tend to get fuzzy after a while) I went to school and discovered that a lot of my friends were actually Nerdfighters, and all the jokes and references that they had made suddenly clicked. It only took so long for the curiosity about John's books to get to me, so I started with Looking For Alaska.
And that's when the changes started.
After finishing Looking For Alaska my view on everything shifted. I looked at the world, people, and even myself differently. I considered death and life differently, I felt like that simple compilation of words had changed who I was forever. And, though the initial rapture faded, it had. As I continued through Paper Towns, An abundance of Katherines, and all of John's other books I began to pick up little habits. I still occasionally capitalize the odd mid-sentence word, and I'm avidly trying to make sure my room embodies who I am.Â
Beyond the concept of books, the work that John and Hank have done make me feel connected. I'm not one of the brilliant Nerdfighters that takes part in almost everything, but I still feel part of such a greater power. Nerdifighteria makes me feel like as long as there are Nerdifghters there, where ever I go is home. In the end, Hank and John have become like awesome uncles to me. I might not have ever met them in person but that's where they fall in my life, and that's where they'll stay. The rest of Nerdfighteria are my Wayward cousins, and I hate to think of where I'd be without them.