Summer Lovin’: For the Love of Harry
I’m Random Ramblings, a 22-year old nerd and bookworm, and college student. Reading is my first love, and writing is my passion. I work part time as an English teacher for children with cerebral palsy. I love my job — these amazing kids inspire and teach me something new, every single day. Check out my blog where I chat about all my literary endeavors!
Ever since I was a child, I have always loved reading. The Baby-sitter’s Club, Animorphs, Nancy Drew, Goosebumps: I devoured them all. But while I liked reading a lot and saw it as a fun hobby, I didn’t necessarily love it. It wasn’t until I read one book — or a series of books — that I fell in love.
The first time I picked up the Sorcerer’s Stone, I was 12. And right from the beginning, I was hooked. There was something so intriguing and exciting about this unique and magical world - and to see it unfolding before me was captivating. I couldn’t stop reading.
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I loved J.K. Rowling’s writing — the way she developed the plot and the characters, her rich descriptions, her attention to detail, and how she made everything so realistic despite the fact that the story was pure fantasy. I loved how fast-paced every single book was, and how there were no boring or dull moments whatsoever.
After completing the first book, I even searched for other books that could compete with it, but couldn’t find any worthy candidates. Soon, I swept through the second and third books, and I was left to wait again. It was torture. But when I would finally get the newest edition in my hands, life was seemingly perfect.
While I loved the books for their literary merit, I also loved this series for deeper reasons. It became a huge part of my life. In a way, I grew up with these characters — I got to know them, see their triumphs and their failures, discover their strengths and weaknesses, witness their ups and downs. It was just like growing up with a friend. I became affected by everything happening in each of their lives. I grew to care about them. I grew to love them.
I remember how great it was to witness the relationship between Ron and Hermione grow in front of my eyes, when I was practically yelling at Ron to man up and admit how he felt about her. How much I smiled for Harry when he discovered he had an godfather, and how I cried when he lost him suddenly. There were, of course, the times when I wanted to throw something at Snape for being so cold-hearted, and those moments when all I wanted was for somebody else to understand him. How I wanted Umbridge to just disappear… and simply adoring Luna Lovegood for being who she was. When Dumbledore and Sirius died, I felt like it was a loss for me too. I never thought that feeling so much for fictional characters was possible until these books.
Looking back now, I see how this series was not only responsible for shaping me into who I am as an avid reader and bibliophile, but they also turned me into someone with a huge dream — to someday be a writer.
All those late nights at around 2am when I should have been sleeping, I was instead trying to come up with my own magical world and characters in my head. I was trying to imagine how it’d be if I created my own story - how incredible that would be. I would get up and take out a notebook and a pen (didn’t even have a laptop back then!) and would start to write. I’d write and write, until I couldn’t anymore and had to actually go to sleep. The next day, I remember eagerly continuing what I’ve written the night before. It was during those times that I discovered my love for the written word itself, and realized my creativity and imagination have no limits.
So now that the final installment of this beloved film franchise is almost here, I know a bunch of us will be watching the end of the phenomenon together. It will be bittersweet; but I know I won’t only be saying goodbye, but, in a way, celebrating my childhood too - right at midnight, all decked out with a Gryffindor scarf and a Harry Potter charm bracelet!
In the end, this post is not only an ode to the Harry Potter series… but really, just to books in general and their power to shape and change a person, help and inspire somebody, and ultimately, make a difference. And if you have ever felt anything remotely similar to how I felt and still feel about these books from your own favorite book or story — even a tiny bit of joy or happiness or inspiration — then I have to say, you are a very lucky person. I know I am.
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For the Love of Harry is part of our Summer Series.
