2011: The end of it all

            Throughout a person’s life, a lot is learned from experience. I’ve been through a lot and it’s only been sixteen years and nine months. I expect much more to come my way. Some people live through the rules of the Bible or other holy scriptures. It is what they look to for comfort and security. Me on the other hand, look to Harry Potter. Harry Potter has had the biggest influence on my life and who I am today. If it weren’t for Harry Potter, I would, without a doubt, be a completely different person.

            When I was seven years old, my mother bought me Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, better know in the US as Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. I was hooked like a fish! It was the most unbelievably, brilliantly, joyous story I had read in my entire life. Everything changed from that moment on. Every time a new book came out, I bought it and read it. This series opened up a whole new world for me.

            After reading a couple of the Harry Potter books, I started picking up all sorts of books at the library and Barnes and Nobles. I became engaged in regular reading. I realized how wonderful it is to get lost in the world of the book. When I read, I visualized the entire story in my head. I was pleased to find that when the Harry Potter movies came out, I wasn’t disappointed in any of the character or set design decisions. It was all exactly as I pictured it.

            Just writing this blog makes my heart warm and my eyes fill with tears. For the past ten years of my life, I have been living in my own world of magic. Harry Potter is my escape from reality. When I read the books, about the books, when I see the movies, I feel connected to them. I feel as though I belong in the wizarding world of Harry Potter. Harry Potter is my number one in life. I put it above anyone and anything. I have learned more in the Harry Potter books than I could in life. Although the series are fiction, the morals are real. Harry Potter isn’t just about a wizard who is fighting for his life. It’s about strength. Finding hope and power within to fight your biggest battles. It’s about loyalty, being there for your friends during their darkest times and helping them overcome it. It’s about honesty, never lying to your friends or your enemies. It’s about climbing the tallest mountains and swimming the killer waves. Harry Potter is a story about seeing the light at the end of the narrow tunnel, even if you think you’ll never make it, as long as you never give up.

Ever since being diagnosed with severe depression four years ago, life has been a drag. Whenever I’m feeling down, I remind myself that if Harry can do it, so can I. Nobody understands my true love for this series. I might not know all of the nitty-gritty details, and I might not remember every single detail, but my love for these books is like nothing else in this world. November 19^th (two days before my birthday!) part one of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is released in cinemas. Part two, is to be released July 2011. I am going to be a lost soul once this series ends. After the books series was fully released, I had only the movies to still look forward to. Now that it is all officially coming to an end, I am slowly, beginning to feel nostalgic. To think that the biggest part of my life is ending, it unbelievable, but thankfully, it will always be around no matter what. It’s not the same as waiting every two years for a new movie, but I will always have the books to turn too and I will soon have the full DVD set as well. Harry Potter will forever and ever be my number one. Thank you J.K. Rowling for giving me the best thing I could ever ask for in life: strength, hope, and Harry Potter.