Why fandom is important

Since I realised that there are more important matters to focus your mind on than whether the upcoming Star Wars trilogy will include my favourite character or not, I have felt a bit guilty spending time with anything that has to do with any of my fandoms*, because I have almost constantly been having thoughts like 'and while I watch this episode of Doctor Who 100 children are dying of starvation. But why spend your time helping them when you can sit on your fat arse, staring at a screen?', which is really rather unnecessary, seeing as I am unable to help those children from my current position, anyway. But I have been thinking a lot about it in attempts to justify my affection for various fandoms, and now I have found a way of doing it/ found the reason to why fandom is important to me.

*drum roll* It is, I believe, because of its similarity to religion. And no, I am not using this simile because my major fandoms happen to include god-like aliens flying around in blue boxes or Norse gods, but because it fills the same need for me as I can imagine that religion does for other people (or, one of the needs religion fill). I have never been particularly religious (currently I am agnostic/atheist), so I cannot tell what really believing in a certain religion is like, but from what I have gathered from my general experience of life and a very brief research ten minutes ago, the main needs that religion fill seems to be:

• Feeling that your existence serves some sort of purpose
• A sense of identity
• A sense of security and comfort
• Guiding in moral principles
• A sort of connection to a higher being
• A medium for socializing and a feeling of belonging
• [I probably forgot something]

Now, as for the first five needs, I have either filled them in another way or have no need for having them filled. It is when it comes to need number six that fandom comes in. See, what makes being in various fandoms important to me is exactly that; I feel like I belong somewhere, and it is a way to meet new people (I can not count all the friends I have just because we happened to like the same TV-show/film). This feels particularly important as I am a severely socially awkward person who experiences difficulties talking to certain people. Equal fandoms provide lots of topic to converse about. And there is that special kind of connection between two people who are in the the same fandom (fandom-people knows what I am referring to).

Come to think of it, it might also fill the second need, at least partially. Just take a look at my first post, wherein I presented myself as both a Whovian and a Ravenclaw. Hm.

So, thanks to this, I no longer feel as guilty devoting a bit of my time to fandom, because sometimes you are actually allowed to think of and prioritize your own well-being, and, as some wise tumblr-user who's username I have sadly forgotten once said, if doing something makes you feel good, whether it is spending some hours on tumblr, baking a cake, watching Doctor Who, or whatever, however meaningless it might seem compared to demonstrating for human right, do it. And my fandoms are just as important as religion; perhaps not to society, but to me.

(This turned out to be a rather confusing, cheesy and generally poorly-written ending, but I am severely tired so we will have to live with it.)

*What 'fandom' means

Not really a source but it helped me whilst writing this