Space ... the final frontier ... these are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise ...

It's impossible to say when I first became a "Trekkie." The original television show was canceled before I was even old enough to know what "voyage" meant, and sadly, ironically, long before its "five year mission" (as mentioned in the opening theme) was complete.

But somehow, sometime between that cancellation and the horrendous reprise that was Star Trek: The Motion Picture, I got hooked.

Now, I can tell you Captain Kirk's middle name (Tiberius), the serial number on the Enterprise (NCC-1701), and I can even teach you how to play the card game "fizzbin." (If you want to learn, stop by and I'll explain.)

I've seen every episode of the original show at least twice, all four movies at least three times (including the aforementioned dud that started it all), and now I faithfully tune in to the Fox Network every weekend to view each new episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

The new generation of Star Trek crew members come equipped with odd names like Jean-Luc Picard and William Riker; a Klingon and an android are bridge officer on the new Enterprise; and I must admit I remain as "fascinated" (thank you, Captain Spock) as ever.

What is it about this concept -- for Star Trek has now transcended the status of mere "show" -- that grips such a large portion of the American population?

The scripts are well-written, of course; Gene Roddenberry has earned the name "genius" among his peers and contemporaries, and the title is well-deserved.

Yes, the acting is impeccable as well; from Leonard Nimoy to LeVar Burton, each and every person who has performed in Star Trek has helped turn the magic of Roddenberry into a chemistry on both the small and silver screens that is arguably unmatched.

Yet, there is something more.

There is an underlying theme in Star Trek that has persisted these two decades of its existence; the crew of the Enterprise is out searching for something -- they don't know quite what, or when or where they'll find it -- ad they're ready to seek out that something "where no one has gone before."

Captain Kirk can wistfully quote Dickens A Tale of Two Cities and Captain Picard can demonstratively call up Hamlet, but the message each man delivers is the same: the human race will never stop trying to improve itself.

No matter what obstacle we may face, our eager willingness to gain knowledge, our desire to improve ourselves as a result of that knowledge, and our wonderful mix of stubbornness and "changeability" will lead us toward our ultimate destination. No, we may not know what that destination is quite yet, but dammit if we aren't busting our tails to get there.

Star Trek, but the very definition of its genre, is "futuristic," but I might hesitate before unduly labeling it "fictional." Part of the human race's natural curiosity leads us to wonder about our future, and though this be but one man's vision of what we may become, at least it is a powerfully encouraging vision.

The crew of the newest Enterprise is advanced beyond 20th-century humanity; telepathy is fairly common, and everyone is wonderfully well-educated; discrimination (even against Klingons) is not in evidence and even the common cold is a thing of the past.

Nonetheless, this "superhuman" crew is out searching, both physically and emotionally, for that next piece to the puzzle of life. They are in many ways an ideal for we "terra-bound" humans to emulate, yet their actions reaffirm for us that our own search, our own "journey" is well worth the effort.

Every time we watch the Enterprise continue its "ongoing mission," we are in a small way continuing one of our own.

Live long and prosper -- or as Data might say, "Yes sir, I thought I just said that."