My Journey with Harry Potter

Everyone has their Harry Potter story.  This is mine.

My long and epic journey with Harry Potter began back in 1997 and I have my dear Grandpa to thank for it.  He had always—and still does—encourage my love of reading.  When I was a little girl he’d take me to Barnes and Noble (then called Bookstar) and would set me loose among the shelves to find novels I wanted to read.  After watching me browse, he would get a feel for what genres I liked and would go on his own hunt for me…and would eventually come back with his arms full of all kinds of books.  Together we would kneel down in an aisle and would go through the back of each one.  Grandpa would always help fill my basket up—sometimes we even needed two!  It was Grandpa who had heard about the new British author, JK Rowling, and how her book Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone had captured the hearts and imaginations of so many children.  Since Grandpa knew I loved books with magic in them, he went to Bookstar on his own one day and bought Sorcerer’s Stone and gave it to my mom to give to me. 

It was one of the best presents Grandpa has ever given me.  Harry Potter isn’t just a book series.  It’s so much more than that.  It’s a phenomenon, and I’m not sure how you can explain a phenomenon.  I know I can’t really find the words to explain how much the series means to me and why.  It’s a mystery, it’s magical, and it’s a story in which you can connect emotionally with each character, whether they are major or minor.  It’s a story about good and evil, love, loyalty, bravery, and sacrifice.  When I first started reading it I could not put it down.  I remember staying up long past my bedtime because I had to unravel the magical mystery of Harry Potter.

As the years passed and I got older, Harry got older with me.  When the fourth book came out a couple of my childhood friends, my brother, my mom and I went to Barnes and Noble for the first ever Harry Potter midnight book release.  I remember the employees pushing giant carts filled with nothing but copies the book down the aisles to the cash registers—but the tops were covered because the dustjacket and title were supposed to remain a secret and a surprise for everyone until the stroke of midnight.  I remember being absolutely delighted with the cover once it was unveiled, and we all were trying to predict what would happen and who the new characters were on the ride home.  When we all got back to my house that night we read together for at least an hour before going to bed. 

As I entered into high school the first movie came out in theatres and the fandom reached a new, incredible high.  I’m proud to say that I have taken part in every part of Harry fandom, have taken an actual Harry Potter class to fulfill a GE requirement during undergrad, and have gone to all the midnight premiers of the movies and the books.  I have three very favorite Harry Potter memories.  One was when I went to the midnight book release of Deathly Hallows.  I went to the Bella Terra Barnes and Noble Harry Potter party with my high school friends, my cousin and my brother and we all had a blast!  The store was decked out in Harry Potter decorations: banners of the four houses were hung from the balcony and golden snitches were hung from every ceiling panel.  People, young and old, either came in Harry Potter-themed home-made or Hot Topic shirts or came in costume—one kid even brought his pet snake!  When the clock stuck twelve pandemonium erupted in the store.  The excitement and happiness was palpable—and you should have seen the parking lot!  Hundreds of people were milling around the outside of the store, waiting for those who had reserved copies to hurry up and finish purchasing so they could have their turn.  Both my brother and I stayed up into the wee hours of the morning that night to read it—and we both finished it the following night.  I remember weeping non-stop during the last few chapters.  My bed was riddled with Kleenex and I can remember my heart breaking when I finally learned the Prince’s Tale, when Fred, Lupin and Tonks died, when Harry spoke to the spirits of his dead family and friends before going to Voldemort to die, and when Dumbledore came to Harry at King’s Cross. 

In the same year that Deathly Hallows was released, my brother and I were two of 2,000 people who won tickets from Scholastic to go meet JK Rowling and have a book signed at the Carnegie Hall in New York.  That was an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I will never forget! 

My third favorite memory was going to the midnight premier of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II last week.  I went with two of my dearest friends, Sam and Molly, and Molly’s family.  I decided to bake Harry Potter “Puppet Pals” cupcakes for the occasion and as I baked I remembered how bittersweet it had been to hold the final book in my hands back in 2007 because I knew it would be the last time I’d be adventuring with Harry, Ron and Hermione.  But at the time I had consoled myself with the fact that there were still the movies to look forward to—but now the movies are over.  I enjoyed every moment of waiting in line for the movie that night—even though I was very aware that it was the last Harry Potter event, I didn’t let it subdue me.  It was so much fun to talk with my friends about our favorite moments in the books and movies, to take pictures with the giant cardboard cutouts of the characters, and watch those who had come in costume.  Some guy dressed up as a dementor battled it out with a stormtrooper.  Yes, a stormtrooper.  From Star Wars.  It was hilarious!

The movie itself was amazing.  We fans cheered when we recognized the famous lines characters had said in the book (such as Molly Weasley’s “Not my daughter, you bitch!” to Bellatrix), and we wept when Snape was murdered, when Harry gathered his tears, and when we saw into his memories of his relationship with Lily.  Alan Rickman is incredible and he will always be Snape—no other actor could ever be him.  Ever.  Tears streamed down my cheeks when Snape held Lily’s lifeless body in his arms and I had to pull out the Kleenex from my purse and share it with my girls. 

Once the movie ended and the credits started rolling the applause was deafening.  We were all laughing and wiping away our tears and I remember just living in the moment, soaking it all in, since it was the last time all the fans and friends would be together united in Harry Potter love. 

Thank you, Jo Rowling, for a wonderful 14 years.  I have stuck with Harry until the very end and have enjoyed every moment.  You’ve created a world that is unique and special and I consider myself blessed to have been a part of the magic.

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