I was really lucky I got to read this section personally because after I did my presentation I found out that a woman at my church was trying to tell children about the evil ways of the books. However, she was trying to tell this to "children" who were between the ages of 16-18 and have been reading Harry Potter their whole lives. For me, it's never been a question that Harry Potter wasn't evil. The fact is that JK Rowling has opened a world that interests children to read. I credit my book obsession to Rowling in a lot of ways. The books have been with my since 3rd grade and I haven't stopped reading since. I remember my private school teacher reading them to us, a chapter everyday.
We can look at Harry Potter and the idea of Christian love and of friendship. The thing about these books is you can relate to them at any age. As a child I loved the fantasy world and idea of a school that accepted people that were different. My dad reads them and is just in love with them as my sister and I are. And now, at this point in my life, I read the books and watch the movies and focus on the romantic relationships that are a plot line in themselves. Mostly, I look at the relationship between Hermoine and Ron.
This is the type of relationship I'm convinced I will have and want. I've known for awhile that I need a guy who will be my friend before anything else. Someone who I can be comfortable around and we can both have friends were we don't have to make it awkward. Also, both of these characters are so different and have things that they are both interested in but they are still drawn to each other. I want someone who has their own life and I have my own life but when we are combined, we both add something to each other. They fight, yes. They are different, yes. More than anything, they're realistic. It's not a perfect relationship, it's real. They are able to talk about things and work things out; love each other despite their differences and in fact, they are both better people because they have loved.
As I sat in the theatre Thursday night at midnight for the premiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, I realized that this was the beginning of an end and I wasn't ready for it. Sure, I'd been waiting all day, all week - lets be honest, years - for this premiere and I didn't want to go through with it. It was a representation of my childhood ending right in front of me, forcing me to grow up and make the world I had always believed in just a thing of the past. Hogwarts will always be real for some child but for me, I have been with Harry from the beginning, from his conception and only my generation can say that. This movie was for us - for those of us who had been with Harry since the beginning, for those of us who saw ourselves in the characters and for those of us who believed that magic was and is real.
My children will know about Harry Potter but they will never understand the excitement and how real it was to so many of us. Each book and movie release, I was there. It seems unreal. For the magic that you gave to my childhood, thank you JK Rowling, thank you.
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