Good morning, Hank. It's Tuesday. Forty-six years ago today, a small baby came into the world. He survived childhood scarlet fever and other illnesses that a hundred years earlier might have killed him. And then he grew up to be internet sensation Hank Green.

That's right, Hank. Today is the birthday of the inventor of 2D glasses himself. The TikTok science guy, the Crash Course man, the VidCon fellow, the Project for Awesome guy. It's Hank Green, everybody. Best-selling novelist. Billboard-charting musician. Emmy Award winner.

His accolades plentiful, his identity diversified, his work schedule unhealthy. Happy 46th birthday, Hank Green.

Now look, I am first and foremost a Hank Green fan. I am a fan of Hank Green's brand new website exploring the rise of colorectal cancer rates among young people. And I am a fan of Hank Green's 1994 Mars exploration page.

And not to brag or anything, but I was a Hank Green fan way before the rest of y'all were hip to him, like back in the 1980s when he used to find every nickel and penny he could and then put them in a gigantic bucket and then count the money for fun because that's what fun was in the 1980s.

But I didn't really know Hank. Like, I went to boarding school when Hank was 11 while he was still forming his personality. And since then, we've never lived in the same city.

I knew Hank as a little brother trying to keep up and pick-up soccer games and bike rides, but I didn't, like, actually know him as a person.

Now, I always admired Hank. He worked a hell of a lot harder than I did—although admittedly that was a low bar to jump over. And he was always a really interesting thinker. Like even in high school, he had such interesting, complex thoughts about everything from ecology to human social structures.

But aside from occasional late-night talks where we would discuss big, interesting topics while he drank caffeine-free Diet Coke and I drank beer, I just didn't know him that well.

And I find this is true for siblings sometimes, especially as they enter adulthood. They sometimes need a set of problems and opportunities, a shared site of interest in order to connect. And Hank and I have had that since 2007. Like, often for siblings, the shared site of connection is aging parents. For us, it's been this—like, this! Not just Vlogbrothers, but Crash Course and Dear Hank and John and a million other things.

And being able to work with someone you trust all the way down, someone you've known since literally the second day of their lives, is beyond a gift.

Hank, when I was in Sierra Leone last week, I kept thinking about you and the thousands of other people who donate monthly at pih.org/hankandjohn to support efforts to improve maternal and child health in the country, even though you've never been to Sierra Leone and most of the donors have never been to Sierra Leone.

Like, I'm in the incredibly fortunate position of being able to glimpse up close the effects of radical healthcare and education inequity because I can travel and I get to travel all over the world.

Last week I met two 20-year-old best friends who live together. One is being treated for tuberculosis alongside her one-year-old child. And I'll just remind you: tuberculosis is a disease that shouldn't exist, let alone a disease that should be slowly malnourishing an already impoverished child.

And I'm really fortunate that those two women wanted to share some of their stories with me because it helped me bridge the empathy gap. Like, whatever may feel distant or different about their lives versus mine kind of collapses when we're all sitting together and I've been invited into their home.

But when you've never been to Kono, you have to find other ways to bridge that empathy gap through imagination and through believing people's stories even when they come through a screen.

And most of the people, including you and Katherine, who've raised over $30 million to support the Maternal Center of Excellence and other efforts to reduce maternal and child mortality in Sierra Leone, haven't been there. You've found other ways to bridge the empathy gap. And I think that's what I find most impressive about you, Hank, is your ability to truly imagine the world complexly and imagine the lives of people living in the world complexly.

And so it is not really surprising to me that when I asked you what you wanted for your birthday, you told me that you wanted me to make a video raising money for the MCOE. So, okay!

Right now, in celebration of Hank Green's birthday, you can get our best deal of the year on Sun Basin Soap, 100% of the profits of which go to support the Maternal Center of Excellence. It's really good soap. We've got some deals on. Link in the doobly-doo. There, I did it. Happy birthday.

All right, one last thing, Hank. Over the weekend, I was traveling and I was recognized by a young Nerdfighter who told me that when she had first moved to the big city, she listened to Dear Hank and John because she didn't have any friends, but it felt like we were friends.

That was one of the kindest things anyone's ever said to me, and it reminded me how lucky I am to have had you as a friend for now 46 years. So, yeah, thank you for everything. I figure your birthday only falls on a Tuesday like once every seven years, so hopefully you'll forgive the sappiness today. Hank, I'll see you on Friday.