I think Larry's Perl 5 Overview shows best what makes perl so cool. In particultar this slide.

I often wonder if Larry had any idea that somewhere between Manlpulexlty and Whipuptitude he created a magnet for minds that see beyond the limits established by the industry and that enjoy coding in the realm of what could be.

Then it hits me, Of course he did! That's what made creating perl fun for him.