“One of my biggest interests and passions, at age ten, was Mork. For Ork. So when I went to Camp Forevergreen that summer, I brought my favorite (and only) fashion accessory: my rainbow Mork-from-Ork suspenders. It was my firm understanding that these were the coolest things a kid could own. But as it turns out, they were not cool in the least. What they were, in actuality, was an invitation to torment me. Abby Rothschild, a tough, towheaded bunkmate twice my size, was the first to accept.

One morning as we prepared to go on a hike, she cooed, ‘Sarah, you should wear your rainbow suspenders. They’re soooo cooool.’ To my gullible ears, Abby sounded sincere, and generally speaking, it did not take much coaxing for me to break out the Morkwear. When we left the bunk, I was proudly sporting the suspenders over a yellow collared Forevergreen shirt.

Not long into the hike I noticed that no matter how slowly I paced myself, Abby and her friends remained a few feet behind me, cackling with delight. Eventually I stopped and turned around to find out what was so funny, at which point the girls stifled their giggles.  That was my answer.

‘Did you tell me to wear these because they’re gay?!’ I asked Abby.  At first she and her pals just looked at me, startled. Then they cracked up again, and I did too.  Genuinely.

‘I can’t help it— I fucking love Mork!’ I said. And I kept laughing. Joining in their laughter saved me. It continues to save me now.

-From The Bedwetter by Sarah Silverman