Some may think that the “magic of friendship” is a cringey trope in media, but it shapes so many people’s lives. For children, friendship themes are often exposed early on: there are classics like My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic (something I’ve found I appreciate more as an adult than I did a child) that contain actual magic, but there’s so much more than that. When I started getting into anime, the first one I watched was Fairy Tail. I didn’t realize why I liked it so much until later in my life: It’s all about forming connections that make you stronger!
Friendship has always played an important role in my life. I can’t even put into words how much I value my bonds with others. It doesn’t just have to be me, either; when I see other people with their friends, I think about how beautiful it is that those people found each other.
A grown up revelation
When I left high school and entered my first semester at UNCO, I still had the cruel mindset of a teenager. I was convinced I wouldn’t be able to make friends because I left my group behind. I was worried that I wouldn’t fit in without my group. So I didn’t try to make friends, nor did I try to be friendly in my classes.
But one day, something just clicked. I was over the petty high school crap and allowed myself to just make friends. Talking to someone everywhere I went made me feel like a kid again, in a time where I didn’t have to worry about making friends because I just knew how to get to know people.
Something that’s helped me be more kind to others and myself is rewatching shows like My Little Pony. I already have the emotional intelligence that the show taught me 15 years ago. Using that, I can dive deeper into the meanings of the show and understand how important the message is for more than just children.
When it comes to children’s media, the magic of friendship is more literal. Take one of the biggest shows about friendship, My Little Pony. The show displays and explicitly states the “mane” virtues of friendship: honesty, kindness, laughter, generosity, and loyalty. Of course, these come together to form magic, which is the sixth element of harmony.
Each issue or foe faced in an MLP episode must be defeated by friendship. Oftentimes, their friendship is challenged and characters must overcome the obstacles to come out a stronger and better friend than they were before. This shows kids that sometimes, it’s hard to make the right decisions at first. When their friends hurt their feelings, they should help the friend understand what they did and how it made them feel. The show teaches emotional intelligence and promotes positive socialization. It doesn’t just help kids interact with their friends, it helps them understand their own feelings.
The tragedy of adolescence and high school
One of the worst life transitions I’ve ever had to experience was middle school and high school. I know I’m not alone in this because I continue to watch it happen. Once kids figure out how to be a good friend and communicate their feelings, they decide they’re “too old” for shows made for children.
This is right around the time that major life transitions happen, and it becomes harder to manage feelings. Adolescents are going crazy hormonally around the same time that phones and internet are introduced in everyday life. (Although, kids are now on the internet at younger and younger ages every year.)
This is when a lot of kids get mean. It’s common for them to forget about the kindness that was taught to them when there are so many other things for them to listen to. Friend groups start to form, and people who don’t “fit in” are left out. This tends to get worse in high school as teenagers form cliques, and the magic of friendship is completely forgotten.
So I definitely recommend watching a kids show about friendship. You’ll learn so much that you may have forgotten or didn’t grasp the first time around. Relearning the magic of friendship is one of the best things a college student can do.
Bring back your childlike wonder, and love your friends.