Five years ago, I stumbled into My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic purely by chance. It’s astonishing how special it has become to me.
At first, it was just something light and entertaining to help me get through a long corona lockdown and to distract myself from the whole pandemic.
But when I saw Fluttershy for the first time, something clicked. I was drawn in immediately. I ended up watching all nine seasons in just four weeks over Christmas 2020, and with every episode,
I became more and more invested. I had never experienced anything like it before. Something shifted inside me during those weeks, enough that I felt drawn to the community and started exploring places like this one. For most of my life, I stayed away from people and communities. They had only ever hurt me, ignored me, or made me feel like I didn’t belong. So the fact that I even considered joining a community was already something unusual, and honestly, I was extremely nervous. After a few hours of looking around, I found this place. And after one week of watching quietly from the sidelines,I finally registered here.

Since then, I’ve experienced so much here. I’ve met people who listened, who supported me, and who helped me in ways I didn’t expect. I learned to trust again. I built connections. Some of those people have become truly good friends. I appreciate every single one of them — whether they are still here or moved on. Becoming part of this community was something deeply meaningful to me.

And beyond the people, I discovered the incredible creativity of the fandom. It still amazes me how much art, music, stories, and passion exists here — both in quantity and in quality. It has all been such a wonderful adventure, and it still isn’t over. The fandom and this forum are lively, welcoming, and full of energy. I’ve even made connections outside this forum and into the German fandom as well.

There’s simply too much to fit into one text, but one thing is clear:
I’m grateful for every moment of these five years — and for everything and everyone that made them special.

So please celebrate with me, here’s to many more years to come! /)

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