Ever since I can remember, I have always loved the "Harry Potter" series. The world J.K. Rowling created is something with which I instantly fell in love. I remember going to the opening night of almost every movie that came out, and I always managed to find some stick to use as a wand while sitting there captivated.
I would also use my black eyeliner to draw a lightning bolt on my forehead. And yes I did – and still do – get teased from my friends about that. I even brought my Harry Potter Snuggie to the last movie premiere, and that was nothing compared to some of the outfits the fans wore to the movies.
While the book is fictional and full of wizardry, Rowling brought some of her own magic into our real world, which made a whole generation enjoy reading again. The amount of children and young adults that bought and read these books is astounding. These books turned out to have more of an impact than I, or even Rowling herself, could have ever predicted.
The Harry Potter community is incredibly large and dedicated, and it is all thanks to Rowling. She has captured our hearts with her books and our eyes with the movies. One of the major reasons why people love it so much is because it is so relatable. Every time you open one of the books, you are entranced with this world that feels like it is your own. You feel as if you are a part of Harry, Ron and Hermione's life, and you feel like they are a part of yours, too. Every time Harry lost a loved one, you cried. Every time Harry battled Voldemort, you were anxious. Every time the Weasley twins made a joke or pulled a prank, you laughed. Every time Dumbledore said something wise, you listened. The books that are full of spells, cast on their readers.
The story of Harry Potter is not just some silly, little children's tale. It is so much more than that. No matter how many times you read the books, you still get something out of them. It teaches both children and adults lessons that they can carry into their own lives.
Lesson #1: You always have a choice.
"We must all make the choice between what is right and what is easy." - Albus Dumbledore.
"It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities." - Albus Dumbledore.
Lesson #2: If you're not blood-related to someone, it does not mean you're not family.
Harry didn't have many blood relatives alive, so the Weasley family took in Harry as one of their own. And the brotherly bond between Harry and Ron is just as strong as that of any blood-related brothers.
Lesson #3: Our actions show our true character.
"The world isn't split into good people and Death Eaters. We've all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to act on. That's who we really are." - Sirius Black.
Lesson #4: Our loved ones never truly leave.
"The ones that love us never really leave us. You can always find them here in your heart." - Sirius Black.
Lesson #5: Don't ever judge a book by its cover.
The best example of this is Severus Snape. He is probably one of the most misunderstood characters to exist. Throughout the series, we only see things from Harry Potter's viewpoint. So the people he likes, we like. The people he doesn't like, we don't like. And because Harry didn't like Snape, we didn't like him. But he turned out to be someone we deeply admired at the end, and this was because we found out the truth about him. We found out about his undying and never-ending love for Harry's mom, Lily. We found out that he was bullied as a child. We found out that he was in fact protecting Harry Potter. We found out that he is not as evil as we initially thought he was. He showed us that it is not always black and white when it comes to good and evil.
Lesson #6: Love is so very important to have in our lives.
And I don't mean just romantic love. One of Voldemort's biggest faults was having no love in his life. The only thing he "loved" was power. We all need someone to lean on, and this series emphasizes this so much.
"Do not pity the dead, Harry. Pity the living, and above all, pity those who live without love." - Albus Dumbledore.
These are just a few of the many lessons one can learn from this incredible series. So if you haven't read or seen the movies, I highly recommend you do both. Obviously read the books first, then see the movies.
So here's to J.K. Rowling for creating a fictional world that happens to be realistic, timeless and charming. You turned a generation on to reading, created a community and made so many people in this world feel at home because, to many, Hogwarts is home.
I will leave you with one of the most famous and important quotes from this series: "Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light." - Albus Dumbledore.
