Well, it's been a few days now since I left Creation's grand Star Trek convention in Las Vegas. And it's funny... the feeling is the same as it was last year when I left — I strangely feel alone all of a sudden, now that it's all over. What is it that brings us fans of Gene Roddenberry's wonderful vision of the future together time after time, year after year? I can think of a few reasons, from my own view.

I have had the wonderful and humbling honor of seeing fandom's beautiful face from both sides of the quadrant. One from a complete and shameless fanboy's perspective, who gets giddy and a little nervous when he shakes hands with Avery Brooks, one of my own heroes (but I promise you, if you've ever met Mr. Brooks, you'll immediately be put at ease by his warmth and genuine charm), or the dry-mouth feeling when he meets William Shatner for the first time and thinks he'll be the first and only one to wittingly look at Mr. Shatner and say, resoundingly: "Denny Crane!" Yeah, he was real amused (not so much, although he was gracious and very polite). Or maybe it's that giddiness of running around the vendor's room looking for some treasure he doesn't already possess. (Yes, I have a confessed thing for Star Trek action figures ... especially of the limited green female variety! Is that wrong? I still need to get that blasted Minimates Vina!)

The other view is that of having the honor of being regarded as a guest. Having time on the main stage to discuss my comic strip "The Trek Life" on STARTREK.COM, my love of Trek and my fellow fans and fandom all around, the honor of standing backstage right smack next to Brent Spiner and Jonathan Frakes, Leonard Nimoy and countless others, and occasionally being accepted into joining in on their conversations. The honor of having a table where I can share my love for Trek through "The Trek Life," and share in the family that is STARTREK.COM with fans, one on one, face to face, shaking hands, hearing stories of fandom, telling my own and making new friends (and new friends for Carl, Kate and Steve, too!).

Those are two perspectives of my own.

But our fandom runs much deeper than that, doesn't it, my friends? Much deeper than our love of action figures and beautiful prints and photo ops and autographs (although these are nourishment for the Trek soul, and you'll have to pry my Shatner photo op from my cold, dead fingers!)

As Star Trek fans and proponents of Mr. Roddenberry's vision of universal acceptance for all, we are gathered for much deeper reasons. We find acceptance in each other. I promise you, in a gathering of several thousand fans, not one of us will ever feel looked down upon or questioned by anyone else. All are equal here, all are family. All are accepted as they are, for better or for worse, with understanding and approval for just sharing this time and space with the rest of us. There's magic in that. There's the message of Star Trek in that as well.

I hate it when I see someone feel unaccepted by others because they are different. I know I've been there enough times in my own life. I think what bothers me the most, even hurts me a little, is when that person takes to heart that foolish unacceptance and tries to become something they're not, to conform to someone else's limited vision of the universe. Star Trek, for those of us (myself very much included) who have ever felt "outside," or different or unaccepted, shows us that this respect for individuality is possible, is real, and again, we find this in each other when we gather together. Man, I love that. The more of these conventions I go to, the more I feel joy for who I am, who we are as fans and my love of these television shows, these movies, this phenomenon, this philosophy ...

So take heart, my friends — never feel like you have to fit in, if at least in your imagination. Rather, feel pity for those in this existence who will never know the family, the acceptance, the love of being who they really are deep down inside, and having the courage and imagination to show it, revel in it, and share it with their brothers and sisters in our family reunions that we call conventions. That, my friends, is what I call living "The Trek Life."

It's funny ... I have to confess that when I leave such a great experience as a Star Trek convention, when I find myself on the street, in a store, in public ... I look around, and wonder if "my kind" are in my presence. Hey, there's comfort in that. I imagine that we — the like-minded of us — are together far more than any of us realize.

I hope I'll see you at a convention soon. Come up and say hi! Just don't touch my Vina Minimate if I finally find it. It may be a family reunion, but some things are simply off limits. ;-)

Comments? Send them to us at treklife @ startrek.com .