A kid I volunteer with found out I'm a Brony. What should I make of that?

[AlbaTross 1,586]

I've been a closet Brony since April, and even snuck out to Brony Can this year without anyone but my Brony friend being any the wiser, but for the most part I've been in the closet about being a part of this fanbase. Anyways, as part of a church group I volunteer at for kids in grades 5-8, I got on a bus with a bunch of pre-teens and went to a conference of sorts at the second or third biggest church in my region. I missed almost all of it, mind you, because one little guy in Grade 5 couldn't handle the loud noise and crowds, so I spent the majority of the evening with him in the lobby. It was a rewarding evening in its own right, and I really hit it off with him. It's moments like that which make my volunteering rewarding, and make me want to have a kid of my own one day.

 

Anyways, on the bus ride back the kid went through my phone and found out about my interest in a show about anthropomorphic horses who live in a non-capitalist world and have a strong affinity for camaraderie. To my surprise he actually seemed intrigued. I said "we don't talk about that", but his response was "why?" He genuinely seemed interested, so I showed him pictures of my MLP collection that I took for this forum. Still, I kind of wanted to stay the cool leader. Now he knows I enjoy a girl's show in my spare time.

 

Actually, the bugger up and changed the wallpaper on my phone to a FiM pic, and was later showing vids off his youtube channel to other kids on my phone, after which I quickly took my phone back and said its battery was dying. I hope none of them caught my temporary wallpaper, which I changed back to the cool pirate skull I had before as soon as I got home. Anyways, at least one kid knows about my secret hobby. What do you make of that?

[Mand'alor Dash 2,224]

non-capitalist world

 

bitch u wot?

 

 

Nah, but really, this isn't as bad as you think. It could actually be good, if you were looking to make a friend. If you're going to volunteer with that kid again, you could always load up an episode or two and let him watch it for himself. It's not like he's going to tar and feather you for it.

[Fractured 2,684]

 

I've been a closet Brony since April, and even snuck out to Brony Can this year without anyone but my Brony friend being any the wiser, but for the most part I've been in the closet about being a part of this fanbase. Anyways, as part of a church group I volunteer at for kids in grades 5-8, I got on a bus with a bunch of pre-teens and went to a conference of sorts at the second or third biggest church in my region. I missed almost all of it, mind you, because one little guy in Grade 5 couldn't handle the loud noise and crowds, so I spent the majority of the evening with him in the lobby. It was a rewarding evening in its own right, and I really hit it off with him. It's moments like that which make my volunteering rewarding, and make me want to have a kid of my own one day.

Anyways, on the bus ride back the kid went through my phone and found out about my interest in a show about anthropomorphic horses who live in a non-capitalist world and have a strong affinity for camaraderie. To my surprise he actually seemed intrigued. I said "we don't talk about that", but his response was "why?" He genuinely seemed interested, so I showed him pictures of my MLP collection that I took for this forum. Still, I kind of wanted to stay the cool leader. Now he knows I enjoy a girl's show in my spare time.

Actually, the bugger up and changed the wallpaper on my phone to a FiM pic, and was later showing vids off his youtube channel to other kids on my phone, after which I quickly took my phone back and said its battery was dying. I hope none of them caught my temporary wallpaper, which I changed back to the cool pirate skull I had before as soon as I got home. Anyways, at least one kid knows about my secret hobby. What do you make of that?

What a wonderful vocabularly...

 

Anyway, if you think these are the type of people who would pick on you incessantly because of your interests, then you probably shouldn't say anything. Unless it's that, though, you shouldn't really feel the need to hide your hobbies. If you're going to do something, do it 100%.

[Admiral Regulus 2,769]

I'm actually quite curious to see what a kid's reaction would be. I could imagine most kids would probably react negatively, but this is a completely different situation from the usual kid-on-kid bullying. This isn't the school environment, and you're the one in charge. Honestly, I'd be surprised if they thought much of it.

 

If it really makes you uncomfortable, you could always lie and say that some other kid put the ponies on your phone.

[Decongia 12]

No big deal. Most people don't care about that someone likes a show like that, anyways. 

[AlbaTross 1,586]

What a wonderful vocabularly...

 

Anyway, if you think these are the type of people who would pick on you incessantly because of your interests, then you probably shouldn't say anything. Unless it's that, though, you shouldn't really feel the need to hide your hobbies. If you're going to do something, do it 100%.

 

Well, I'm a volunteer leader, and more than old enough that a kid couldn't possibly "pick on me" in any way that would be meaningful or have any measurable psychological effect on me. I suppose I can't keep my hobby a secret forever, especially since I have attended one Brony con and even made a questionably pricy manga purchase the morning of the evening I described. I guess I should give my all to things I do. If I gave half effort to being a leader I would have performed much worse(that evening is a story and a half).

 

bitch u wot?

 

 

Nah, but really, this isn't as bad as you think. It could actually be good, if you were looking to make a friend. If you're going to volunteer with that kid again, you could always load up an episode or two and let him watch it for himself. It's not like he's going to tar and feather you for it.

That might not be a bad idea. Granted, it will be some time again before I have that kind of time with just one one kid. As for the capitalism comment, while there are day to day transactions in Equestria, they are not normally mediated by large corporations. The economic system seems to be something along the lines of classic mercantilism, or perhaps Marxian Socialism, where there's some private ownership, and merchants exchange money for their wares, but it's nothing like the oppressive world system we currently live. Granted, it wouldn't be true mercantilism either, since class relations don't factor into transactions. The rent in kind/labour system of Ponyville definitely wouldn't fly in our current world.

[Roughshod 719]

Anyway, if you think these are the type of people who would pick on you incessantly because of your interests, then you probably shouldn't say anything. Unless it's that, though, you shouldn't really feel the need to hide your hobbies. If you're going to do something, do it 100%.

 

It doesn't have to be anybody's business but your own what your hobbies are or who you share them with. If you want to maintain your privacy about liking FiM or be more open about it then it's your choice. Any advice you take on the matter is also your choice of course.

[Solid 1,327]

I usually don't get hyper-obsessed with trying to explain the whole brony thing because that'll just reinforce them to think this is some kind of "abnormal" thing. If I like say a cool video game, I don't usually spend a great deal of time explaining what it's all about unless they specifically tell me to do so, even then I don't spend a great deal of time explaining and try to keep it concise.

 

But that's probably just how I treat my hobbies, treat MLP like you would treat your other hobbies, and you'll most likely be fine.

 

Well if he's interested and specifically tell you to tell him more about it, feel free to do so.

[AlbaTross 1,586]

I usually don't get hyper-obsessed with trying to explain the whole brony thing because that'll just reinforce them to think this is some kind of "abnormal" thing. If I like say a cool video game, I don't usually spend a great deal of time explaining what it's all about unless they specifically tell me to do so, even then I don't spend a great deal of time explaining and try to keep it concise.

But that's probably just how I treat my hobbies, treat MLP like you would treat your other hobbies, and you'll most likely be fine.

Well if he's interested and specifically tell you to tell him more about it, feel free to do so.

That might not be bad advice. I only really showed him a few pics of my Brony Can swag, and left it at that. If he's really intetested, I can't really say no. I may just send him the link to an episode or two. Otherwise, I probably won't bring it up. @Roughshod: That's the approach I've taken up till now. I guess I don't really need to change it. Oh well, life goes on.

[Denim&Venöm 18,830]

There's a lesson you can take away from all this: Don't give your phone to a kid you just met. 

 

Other than that, don't make a big deal of being a Brony. If said kid brings it up again, just say it's a good show. or do what I did when some kids were asking about my MLP play mat and say "it's a man's show."  And if he seems curious, tell him why you like the show, the benefits of being in this fandom, the people this show has helped, and possibly recommend an episode or two for him. 

[Silver Letter 1,832]

It's hard to say. If the child is unable to respect your wishes in regards to keeping your interests a secret then it might have been a negative thing for him to have found out. I could recommend being more cautious in the future.

[AlbaTross 1,586]

There's a lesson you can take away from all this: Don't give your phone to a kid you just met. 

 

Other than that, don't make a big deal of being a Brony. If said kid brings it up again, just say it's a good show. or do what I did when some kids were asking about my MLP play mat and say "it's a man's show."  And if he seems curious, tell him why you like the show, the benefits of being in this fandom, the people this show has helped, and possibly recommend an episode or two for him.

 

I can't really say I had just met him, but I hadn't actually hit it off with him until then. He was very interested in my phone, and it seemed like a good icebreaker, plus he had been playing around with my phone all evening up till that point. In the event the kid does bring it up, I don't plan on dwelling on it too much. I could maybe recommend an episode or two. I guess I'll cross that bridge when I get there. There's no point in thinking too hard on it right now, but it can't hurt to be honest if he's really that curious.