On August 3rd, the Nerdfighter community celebrates Esther Day. Now you may be thinking, what are “Nerdfighters” and who is Esther and why has she been given a special day? Well have no fear, I will address these questions throughout the blog post.
John Green, the genius behind many novels including The Fault in Ours Stars and Looking For Alaska, started the Nerdfighter community alongside his brother Hank Green a few years back; and has been growing ever since. For those of you who may not know, John and Hank have been, and continue to make, weekly YouTube videos where they discuss matters of the week to each other and whatever else they may have on their mind. Their channel, Vlogbrothers, encourages their viewers to be themselves and embrace their nerdiness; and this is where the term “Nerdfighter” comes in. Nerdfighters are basically fans of not only John and Hank Green, but also of everything geeky, nerdy or sciency. Nerdfighters come together in large groups at conventions such as LeakyCon, and also in smaller groups around their cities.
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Esther Earl was a sarcastic, funny, and kind young girl who passed away from cancer in 2010. She was an avid Nerdfighter and met John Green while at a Harry Potter convention and he was deeply inspired by her intelligence and sophisticated thoughts, but also by her humor and silliness, so much so, that the novel the Fault in Our Stars is dedicated to her. Although there are similarities, the character Hazel Grace and the real life Esther Earl are not at all the same person. Esther Earl had a YouTube channel of her own, and although she would have enjoyed being famous from them, they were more of a diary where she could show her thoughts and feelings to others or share personal messages of inspiration to her viewers; and that’s just what she did. She would often talk about love, but not heart shaped chocolates and teddy bear love, but love that really means something. Love for your family and friends, for Harry Potter, John Green and the community of Nerdfighters around the world.
Although I did not know Esther Earl personally, after reading the book, This Star Won’t Go Out, which consists of many diary entries Esther wrote in and out of the hospital, I felt a deeper connection than just me reading a young girl’s diary; I felt as if we were friends. Like many other people that read the book, I was inspired by her hope, love and intelligence but really fell in love with her quirkiness and charm. There isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t think of Esther and it really hurts to know that in just one year I will be older than she will ever be; that I will keep growing, as she stays the same. But at the same time I am so happy to have read her story, and to have gotten to know her through John, through her Youtube videos and through her book, and for that I am forever grateful.
Although Esther Day has already passed; I like to think that every day is Esther Day. Please watch this video to find more about Esther Day and what it really means. I love you Esther Earl, R.I.P.