What being a brony means to you

[Red End 16]

Hello everypony! This is my first topic in the Sugarcube Corner.

 

I wanted to ask you what being a brony means to you.

 

To me, being a brony is not just being a fan of MLP.

Let me explain myself:

I've always been an extremly shy person, to the point of considering I had social anxiety. But, since I started watching the show and being active in communities like this one and PonySquare, (I'm talking about 2 weeks ago), I've felt more comfortable with my self, both on the inside and on the outside.

Right now I have 2 actual RL friends (I just moved to another high school), and feel more active and happy.

You see, before I was not only shy, but depressed. 

 

It may sound like bullshit, but this has been an incredible change for me. I've finally found who I really am, and most importantly, accepted it.

 

And all of this thanks to MLP, and the brony community itself.

The love and respect that this community shares and supports has really helped me a lot.

 

So, yeah, thanks. Really.

 

Has something like this happened to you?

Thanks for reading this, if you have. See ya.

[MichaelxXxTrixie 433]

To me being a Brony is being able to wake up and smile.

 

It's finding something you honestly like and being happy with it and then using that to become a better person.

 

That's what it means to me.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

To me, being a brony is going out and showing the world that an open mind can lead to many discoveries that you would've never discovered. It's about shattering the walls of stereotyping. 

 

It means waking up every day and learning to take the day one step at time. It means to be grateful for all the support you get from the fandom when almost nobody around you comes to your aid. 

 

It also means taking the lessons from the show and applying it to real life, which in essence makes you a better person.   

[Malinter 3,064]

I take the title seriously, I'm a bro who likes ponies.

 

Watching MLP did reveal to me how much violent crap I used to spend my time watching, and that some of its lessons it teaches are actually very good ones that even an adult could learn from.

 

It also revealed to me a problem I had but never realised what it was. Namely anxiety. I would sometimes worry about things for no good reason which made going outside very uncomfortable. I saw these traits in Fluttershy and ever since I've known what was wrong with me I've been alot better so I owe the show for that.

 

Its also important that a show stresses the importance of making friends in an age where everyone just stays locked away in there rooms. If only i'd seen FiM when I was young. I'd probably be much more social.

 

That about covers my experiences as a Brony.

[Armchair Adventurer 211]

I have had self confidence issues and I have been really shy for a long time. As time went on I started losing all motivation and was caught in a downward spiral. I felt like nobody really cared about me. I didn't use to be like that but something happened in my personal life from which I couldn't really recover. 

 

Then a friend got me to watch MLP. After I finished watching the current three seasons of Friendship is Magic I wanted to have something to do that was related to the series. So I joined this community. Since then I noticed myself being a lot more extrovert and outgoing then ever. I am a lot happier now then I have been in the last three-four years. I have started writing short stories again which used to be one of my favorite hobbies but I haven't done it in a long time prior to this.

 

Being a brony for me has been a life changing experience. Although I do have a tendency to magnify some problems out of proportion and dragging myself even further down the show and the brony community helped me climb out the hole I crawled into. My problems might not have been as bad as I thought but it doesn't matter now because I think they are behind me.

 

Since then it has become important to me to make friends and show the same kindness I was shown.

 

Being a brony today for me is about having fun with others, making new friends and trying to be as good of a person as possible.

 

edit: Wow this become a lot more of a rambling speech than I meant it to be  .

Edited October 7, 2013 by Armchair Adventurer

[Scootalove 10,684]

Being a brony means that I have a community that cares for one another, and having fun with friends that are willing to hang out with you. It even makes me feel so good about myself.

[ReverseFaller 2,483]

To me being a brony means two things.

1. Be myself. I wear pony shirts and public and I don't care what others think. I enjoy the show, so why should I care what others think If I wear a pony shirt? I'm also a lot more open about myself then I used to be.
2. Be happy. Becoming a brony has taught me just to enjoy life, and the little things it has to offer. My overall happiness has definitely increased since I became I brony.

[Radost 76]

its more of a liability to me at this point. I have thought about leaving the fandom. I just feel like i sneak everything i do with MLP, i am an open brony, and i have allot of friends and they almost all know i am a brony.(mainly because of my princess luna shirt) But when i am on my computer and such i always find myself alt tabbing out of MLP related things when i hear someone coming. I am in many different friend clicks and it doesn't seem to get in the way of way people think of me, most the time me being a brony is only brought up every now and again, but i was in a situation the other day where i had to hustle some acid to help my friend pay off some debt with my main 2 peoples(my brother and my really good friend DJ) in my luna shirt and no one said anything the entire day and i was all over town that entire day and it just kind of made me realize i really don't care. I think the entire time i have been a brony i have only had to tell one person off for saying it was weird i was a brony but i just don't think people say a hole lot because i am cool as fuck to other people and i am not in your face kind of brony. I just enjoy the show and the fandom, i also like using mlp as a creative outlet although i find it hard when i got things to do and people walking around my house all day. I enjoy being part of the fandom to much though, and i am 17 now so it wont be that long until i get my own place so i am just going to tough it out.

Edited October 7, 2013 by Radost

[Red End 16]

Wow, thanks for all the replies, I really like seeing that there are other people like me here, ^.^

*BROHOOF to everypony who replied ;D*

[GhostPony750 958]

To me, it's about enjoying a show. I like that show, and it seems millions people do, too. So I just stay in the group and discuss.

 

Also, we have here the best forum I've seen. So that's another thing.

[The 2nd Mass 28]

I personally feel like being a brony means that you are different and don't give a damn about what other people think. It also means you get to be a part of this awesome community.

[Fluttershyfan94 5,738]

Being a brony means that I'm a fan of my little pony.

 

The brony community means the world to me, I really love being a brony. There are a lots of other things but that would be a long list, I love you all.

Edited October 7, 2013 by Fluttershyfan94

[Untitled Goose Q 5,136]

At its core, being a brony just means that I am a fan of the show.

 

But it also means more to me now. Now, it means I am a part (a small part, sure, but a part) of this wonderful, wonderful community. And that really does mean a lot to me.

[~Silver Essence~ 2,621]

To me at it's best, is to be happy and to be proud of what you like despite the odds.

 

Also, it shows how a show's creativity and inspiration can leave a great outlook towards others.

[Frith is Magick 1,471]

Being a brony is nothing more than being someone who enjoys MLP:FiM, but the type of people who meet this definition make it more. The show teaches lessons about confidence and friendship and is mostly innocent fun. Many people who become bronies started out socially awkward, but have moved away from that in part because of the show. The community is full of wonderful and talented individuals. For the most part there is acceptance, friendship, and tolerance, but we aren't smiling idiots and stoners. A trip to the debate pit reveals a multitude of intelligent and informed people who can have passionate arguments and have these conflicts without it getting personal.

 

The greatest thing is the diversity. There are so many of us from countless backgrounds and with countless interests. The only thing we have in common is our enjoyment of the show. There is a mixing of ideas and styles leading to a rich culture. The only people who have difficulty finding a welcoming niche in the community are haters who have no desire to join. 'Brony' used to refer to older males who enjoyed MLP, but now it refers to anyone who watches MLP and isn't a girl younger than 10 (the exception to this is pegasisters, but some of them do prefer 'brony'). 

 

This has turned into me saying why I like the community instead of describing what a brony is, which is just someone who enjoys My Little Pony.

[AdrianJames 26]

You seem to be asking how it affects you? or what you take out of the show? or the brony community?

Well, anyway, to me its affected me in a positive way, putting a smile on my face and I sing all the my little pony songs everyday and it makes my mom happy to see me happy, even though the past few years have been the hardest of my life.

I really enjoy being to able to talk with other people who also enjoy the show and characters, because it feels good to be with people who agree with the lessons of friendship.

[Hiram32 20]

I personally feel like being a brony means that you are different and don't give a damn about what other people think.

 

/\/\/\ My life in a nutshell.

 

Being a brony to me is just an extension of my never ending quest to never grow up.  I've always loved cartoons, and when I first watched some MLP (after reading about bronies) I was really shocked at the amount of quality in each episode.  In today's day in age, most cartoons are pumped out without any real writing, voice acting, or even good animation.

 

I can only imagine what it must be like being in middle school or high school and telling your friends you like MLP.  When I was in high school I got bullied just for wearing the wrong band t-shirt.  I tip my hat to all of you who stand in defiance and have to put up with bullying or anything else of that nature. 

[Sunset Shimmering 43]

Well, being a brony makes me feel like being a part of a secret organization with friends who are always by your side, except that it is not a secret and most of the netizens hates us. Although they hate us, we are not going to stop and we don't give a *insert vulgar* about them!

[ReverieRiver 525]

To me, being a brony means being part of a community that reaches all corners of the world (or at least, I'd like to think). It's being part of a community built on the motto "love and tolerate," united by one common interest. In this community, beautiful things are shared: art, music, stories. To be a brony, to me, is to be someone that is open about who they are and expresses themselves in the best way they know how.