Sunday, September 7, 2014

Back to Hogwarts Week: The Series That Lives

     I discovered the Harry Potter series the year that the last book came out. It didn’t seem like the end to me, it was only the beginning. The Order of the Phoenix movie had just came out and there were still three more movies to go.

     The midnight showing of The Deathly Hallows part 2 was the best movie experience that I have ever had. There were all these people sitting in line for hours with us, we’d talk about the series, play trivia games, there were people handing out extra Harry Potter cookies that they had made, and the theater gave us pumpkin ice cream to sample (it tasted like pumpkin pie, but with a different texture and it was frozen). When the movie started there was lots of giggling and shushing going around until everyone calmed and was pulled into the movie. We all laughed and cheered and gasped and cried at the same parts. Even though we didn’t know each other we were all connected by this amazing series.
It wasn’t until the summer after the last movie came out that I realized that it was over. With all the movies coming out it never occurred that the series was over and had been for a couple of years by that time. It made me sad.

     Now eight years after the last book came out I am reading the series for the eighth time, I’m taking a college class that is devoted to studying Tolkien and Rowling, and a theater near me just had a showing of the Sorcerer’s Stone again. Harry Potter is not gone. This is not the end. As Rowling said, “Whether you come back by page or by the big screen, Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home.”

     Even though the series has ended it is still alive on page, on screen, and in our hearts. We will not let it die.

     -Christina

6 comments:

  1. I would love to take the college class you are taking. I didn't even realise such a thing existed!

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    1. Yeah, I was so excited when I saw the class listed. I just knew I had to sign up.

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  2. I agree 100%: it is NOT the end! I got into the series the same year the last book was coming out too. As soon as I finished DH, I immediately started a series re-read and did so up to 7 times! I've taken a bit of a break with the re-reads these past few years but I find I'm really missing the boy who lived and the rest of the gang :D I think re-read # 8 might be in order!

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    1. I thought that I'd take a break after the seventh time. As much as I love the books I don't want to get bored of them. And then summer came and I was craving them and now I have this class. We'll see how long I can keep up this tradition :)

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  3. Awww that is so sweet and so true! Once a HP fan, always a HP fan and there are many of us and I just love the sense of community I immediately feel when I meet a fellow Potter fan for the first time. The series will live on in generations to come and who knows, we might all get the chance to introduce Harry to the new generation ourselves :D

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    1. My baby nephew is named Harry (he's not named after the character) and I just can't wait to introduce the series to him... I'm going to be waiting a long time.lol

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