Happy one-year anniversary, GrokNation 🎉🎈🍰

Hello people of the Universe!

I come back to celebrate the one-year anniversary of GrokNation, yay! *clap clap clap* *confetti* *we did it* *high five* *boob five* *Sheldon’s koala face* *unicorns flying in the sky* *sounds of lightsabers*  *rain of fluffy animals* *dancing like Blossom*

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Watch me dance like Blossom Russo to support @missmayim and @groknation!! I got a new shirt and a notebook from @cznd!! 🙌🏻 It is a gift from me to me to celebrate the end of the semester. I survived exams, demonstrations (this cliché about French people is true), and an awful administration, I totally deserve a reward! 🤓🍭 Btw, go read the last article of GrokNation (certainly in Mayim's bio). It is about mental illness and it is the real story of a little boy who has anxiety and lives now a happier and easier life. We learn why his parents never knew when he felt bad and why he didn't tell anything: he didn't know he wasn't supposed to be feeling that way. If you suffer from mental illness, I think you understand what he means. We always try to find a reason to what we feel. At some point, we end up thinking that what is going on inside of us is normal and happens to everybody. But well, we are wrong. This article may help some of you. It could be a support. I know what I am talking about… When your family or even your former teachers ask why you can't go to a crowded place, why you are often so anxious and tired, or if you lost weight (for the 4th time in a row), it is always nice to connect to somebody else. 🙂 Take care. #mayimbialik#imwithmayim#groknation#grokite#blossom#dance#hyperlapse#thebigbangtheory#tbbt#amyfarrahfowler

A post shared by Loulou ☀️🌻💦🌙 (@milledetails) on May 29, 2016 at 12:26pm PDT

(Click here to read the article I was talking about in the caption)

Now that you picture the scene, you are ready for the following. A year ago, I wrote for the first time about GrokNation, explaining why I thought this website was groundbreaking. Since then, I have not only supported Mayim’s honesty and followed her journey with enthousiasm and surprise, but also have discovered faces of GrokNation I never imagined.

❀ Diversity

The website offers an amazing spectrum of subjects, writers and opinions that is not negligible. It is pretty easy to find what you are looking for as they propose to grok about racism, feminism, parenting, pop culture, relationships, sex, mental illness, Hollywood, and this list in non-exhaustive. You have also the chance to meet new writers besides Mayim, each of them bringing their experience and opinions to the topic of their choice. Mayim also does some videos and interviews you should see and read.

❀ Intellectual stimulation

I can’t tell you how many times I clicked on a GrokNation post thinking I wouldn’t understand the subject, or thinking it wouldn’t interest me and I wouldn’t discover anything new. I was wrong every time. It is not because you have never heard of something or because you don’t care that it isn’t worth the try.

What I have learnt is that disagreeing with someone can be healthy. It is hard for me to write that, haha, but yes, it can. IT IS FREAKING CHALLENGING, but you learn much more when you are able to listen to someone and respect that they won’t change their mind. I can’t deny, it affects you sometimes, but you don’t have to carry the negativity of a person you will certainly never meet or speak to again. And if it is someone you want to befriend, work it out together. See this as a possibility to explore all the faces of the society you live in. If you want to change things, you have to know why your “opponent” see them differently. Just look at the comment section and you’ll see that most people share in a respectful way, even though they disagree. I perfectly remember that time GrokNation posted about abortion and several women said they were against the abortion for themselves and every woman should have the chance to choose and do whatever they want with their body. I think that, for some of us, it is pretty complicated to be that comprehensive and open-minded.

❀ Making friends (!!!)

I love being alone. I love reading, drawing, walking and dancing, and all of that doesn’t require a partner. But the fun really began at GrokNation when I started making friends with other grokites from across the world. We basically speak on Twitter or Instagram now as we share art (shoutout to Regina‘s account because I am just in love) and thoughts about what we have in common.

We help each other and laugh together. And kind of fangirl together. Squad goal, as Sarah would say! The perfect example is that night we were all worried not to be able to watch Mayim’s Christmas movie as we don’t live in the US. We didn’t know each other for long but we were in the same boat, a sinking boat. The link we had stopped working 5 minutes before the movie started but fortunately, we found a way to watch it together anyway. We had woken up at 2 or 3 am and I remember having my cup of tea on my side and chatting and tweeting during the whole movie, trying to take screenshots of our favorite moments or to choose between hugging the huge teddy bear or Mayim (Ryan McPartlin wasn’t even in the equation).

Besides having fun online, we also grok. Deeply. Like, really. Mayim wrote about GoT one day and my first thought was “she has been keeping that for so long in her mind that she has just written the best article I have ever read.” To me, it is one of the most elaborate, precise and heartfelt she has posted. The other ones concern her father, which are very musical and poetic. You can almost hear her voice whispering a song. Going back to GoT, I spent an entire day to discuss the pointed issues with two grokites on Twitter, Aurélie and Tamara, who have been very supportive and involved in every conversation we have had. We asked each other questions in the most honest way, trying to understand what could it mean to us but also to the society in general. It is typically the kind of moment when you realize you can discuss tough topics without judging or belittling someone’s opinion just because it is different from yours. To be honest, this is very hard for me to keep calm when people don’t see the importance of feminism or education for example, but I am working on it. :) GrokNation is a good school.

Sometimes I wish I could cross the street and meet with every grokite I know around a drink so that we could discuss and have fun together. When you belong to a community, it is pretty easy to meet the other members and get to know each other, but our group is virtual and is not based on one particular aspect of our lives. If you love dancing, you enter a school or an association to learn and share your passion, but GrokNation has no specific interest, there is not an only reason to be part of. You read their posts because you love Mayim, or TBBT, or science, or nerdiness, or jewishness, or political thoughts, and I can go on. Our community is pretty eclectic, which is the best thing I could have imagined.

❀

It is time for me to wish a happy anniversary to GrokNation for once and for all. It has been an amazing year and I am sure the following won’t be disappointing.

I wish you as much happiness as I had during this whole year grokking with grokites-friends. Take care and light up the world!

Marion