I LARP. I Like it. Shut up.

There are two sentences I hear a lot about LARP.
„It's fucking childish." or „You need to grow up and be an adult."

For starters: I'm a realist. I know most people are close-minded, stupid and bitter, fixed on common notion of „normality." They just don't know better, in most cases it's not their fault and I don't think It'll ever get better.
People are tolerant these days – but not because they understand the specific problem. They are tolerant of some things, because they're told to be tolerant to these things, not because of a result of their own critical thinking.
But I sort of feel an urge to speak about why I do what I do, and why the sentences above are deeply wrong.
It's not the internet trolling, what bothers me, I write this mostly because I'm getting married after three awesome years of relationship, and yet some people close to me think I'm not mature enough for this just because I'm a larper.

(I hope my english is good enough to make my point.)

Fantasies are simply not only for children. It's very huge mistake to banish it from an adult world. It is, it already was and will be part of our minds.

So, for the first one:
What's the definition of „childish?" I allways thought, that meaning of this word relates to social maturity and the way you handle your life and treat others, your behavior. Not the way you're having fun.
I also know people, who thinks having fun is not mature, but that's obviously nonsense, I'll skip that.

All the fun we have has been developed from childish fun.

Is there any sort of fun, which is acceptable only, when children do it? I say no. Adults entertain themselves EXACTLY the same way, as when they were kids. It doesn't disappear, it just develops, gains complexity, grows up with people.
For example, child has fairy tales – books or movies. Adult has also books and movies filled with made up characters, just with different kind of superpowers. And more complex.
How's little red riding hood or Harry Potter more silly or more made up than Superman? Captain Nemo? Sherlock Holmes? In no way. The motive doesn't matter. And the motive doesn't need to be even real.
Does majority of people think someone is silly or childish, when reading a Bible? One of the stories in here is about the talking snake on a magical tree.

The reason, why an adult doesn't find an amusement in child literature or movie, doesn't lie in fantasy. I mean, not in fantasy itself – it lies in the way it was handled.
I could apply the same principle in every way of having fun.
So LARP battle is just more sophisticated form of running in the woods with stick in your hand.
But in running in the woods with a stick in my hand I don't find any amusement. I need the fantasy developed -background, story, costume, organization, tactics...

And when we speak about LARP battle particularly, your motivation in battle is the same, like when you play sports: You are enjoying competing, trying to win. Better team with better tactics wins.

For the second one:

When someone says that, he doesn't really want me to be an adult, he wants me to stop doing what I like. Because LARPing doesn't affect me being adult at all.
And if I'd stop doing something I enjoy just because others said so, I would be stupid.

I've grown up. I have job and I've moved out of my parents's house long ago. I'm doing my best trying to be responsible, helpful, caring for others. I try to be tolerant and open minded, keep my word and allways be there for my friends.

Why does that matter, what I do in my spare time? Is it enough to judge my entire personality? There's more about me, let me tell you, what LARPing gave me!
It gave me amusement, it gave my friends. It gave me my fiancé. It teached me how to work leather, how to sew cloth, and much more about history and artisan crafts. I'm practically every day learning new stuff. I now know about bushcraft, survival techniques, old myths, special effects or how to make my own beef jerky. So many informations came to me through my hobby! It also gave me long-term project, creative way to spend my evenings.

So I say: Fuck you. I'm doing LARP. I'm currently planning a wedding with my fiancé also. He is a wonderful man, AND most cunning orc in the Middle-earth.

And when we have kids, they sure wouldn't mind to help us slay the dragon with a foam sword.