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Even though I gained the right to vote more than five years ago, even though I just got married in May, even though I can stay on my parents’ insurance for three more years and even though I am in an enormous amount of student debt, at approximately 1:30 a.m. Friday morning, my childhood will officially — by my standards — come to an end.
As the last scene plays out in the final installment of the “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II,” it is safe to say that I will probably be a little choked up.
I already know how the whole thing plays out seeing as I read the book from cover to cover the day it came out and then again just one week ago in preparation for the final movie.
But knowing who dies and who lives does not make this any easier; it is still the end of what I consider a huge part of my life growing up.
I was 12 years old when I started reading the books. The “coming to age” theme was the main reason I connected with the books like I had never done with any other series before.
For the seven years at Hogwarts and abroad, it was as if I had my own personal Invisibility Cloak as I pictured myself right alongside Harry, Ron and Hermione every step of the way.
Sure, at the basic level it is a series about witchcraft and wizardry, but the crux of the books are its themes about facing fears, dealing with emotions, bigotry, hate, oppression, first loves, overcoming odds and eventually — death.
These are deep issues for children to be dealing with, but I can speak from experience knowing that even at the ages of 12-18 these are issues that I struggled with — and still do to this day.
Just because they are children’s books doesn’t mean they can’t teach moral issues and in the end make us better people for reading them.
The books taught me about giving people second chances in life — Draco Malfoy — and to not jump to judgement even though all of the evidence points in one direction — Severus Snape.
And in the end we are all like Voldemort — er, “He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named” — because like him, we all fear death.
But Harry taught us that love conquers death and the only kind of immortality comes from slowing down in life and cherishing the memories we make right now.
Most importantly, the series taught me to love books and to love to read.
And while my childhood as I know it will come to an end early Friday morning, I know that, as author J.K. Rowling puts it, “Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.”
Even though I gained the right to vote more than five years ago, even though I just got married in May, even though I can stay on my parents’ insurance for three more years and even though I am in an enormous amount of student debt, at approximately 1:30 a.m. Friday morning, my childhood will officially — by my standards — come to an end.
As the last scene plays out in the final installment of the “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II,” it is safe to say that I will probably be a little choked up.
I already know how the whole thing plays out seeing as I read the book from cover to cover the day it came out and then again just one week ago in preparation for the final movie.
But knowing who dies and who lives does not make this any easier; it is still the end of what I consider a huge part of my life growing up.
I was 12 years old when I started reading the books. The “coming to age” theme was the main reason I connected with the books like I had never done with any other series before.
For the seven years at Hogwarts and abroad, it was as if I had my own personal Invisibility Cloak as I pictured myself right alongside Harry, Ron and Hermione every step of the way.
Sure, at the basic level it is a series about witchcraft and wizardry, but the crux of the books are its themes about facing fears, dealing with emotions, bigotry, hate, oppression, first loves, overcoming odds and eventually — death.
These are deep issues for children to be dealing with, but I can speak from experience knowing that even at the ages of 12-18 these are issues that I struggled with — and still do to this day.
Just because they are children’s books doesn’t mean they can’t teach moral issues and in the end make us better people for reading them.
The books taught me about giving people second chances in life — Draco Malfoy — and to not jump to judgement even though all of the evidence points in one direction — Severus Snape.
And in the end we are all like Voldemort — er, “He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named” — because like him, we all fear death.
But Harry taught us that love conquers death and the only kind of immortality comes from slowing down in life and cherishing the memories we make right now.
Most importantly, the series taught me to love books and to love to read.
And while my childhood as I know it will come to an end early Friday morning, I know that, as author J.K. Rowling puts it, “Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.”
