The saga of Harry Potter and friends easily offsets my emotional balance. Why? That is for future writing sessions to try to solve. This will inevitably be followed by additional years of therapy sessions discussion groups trying to figure out the point of my writings. But I will not concern myself with the future. Let’s focus on the now.
There is less than 34 hours until I am teleported back to Shell Cottage, witnessing Dobby’s funeral. Bless that magical elf’s soul! Yes, I was one of those persons whose heart swelled with pride as Dobby one upped Bellatrix in the last movie. I unabashedly cried when I read of how Harry grieved for his little buddy in the book. Oh my. The pain is still fresh.
I will make no excuses for my imagination. I can best describe it as a Vulcan-like capacity (i.e. emotional transference) to experience the feelings of characters in the books I oh-so-much-love to read. The magical world of HP is quite vivid. Yes, the locations, the history, and the magic are well described and fun to re-imagine at theme parks; but ultimately, it is the characters that draw me into their Google+ circles. I began to record some initial thoughts earlier this week. I wrote in a message to a few peeps the following:
I cannot yet explain the origin of my enthusiastic reception and enduring commitment to the Harry Potter series, yet it exists at an “elite” level. I can, however, detail my participation over the years in generating excitement within the HP fandom. Despite having read the books many times over, I continue to be thrilled, surprised, and touched by the experience. All of the philosophizing done b/c of the books, all of the mid-night gatherings dressed as a wizard, and all of the 6hr+ waits in line are not easily forgotten. Rather as the final movie approaches, these experiences are more acutely cherished. My emotional investment into the books and movies is quite laughable. Yet, I am not alone in this journey.
Recently, I cautiously perused the usual HP news sites. I have been avoiding this activity for the past two weeks. The premiere for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II filled the news feeds. One word was sufficient for me to smile non-stop.
Richard Reid, a critical HP fan and contributor to Mugglenet, summarized his review for Deathly Hallows—Part 2 with the word: delicious. If you have ever heard Richard’s negative comments from past Mugglecast episodes, your excitement would bubble over as much as mine when I now read his one positive review. I will cry on this movie. That is certain.
I read that message with fondness...(and a huge dorky smile) because my feelings remain unchanged. Each day my excitement for the movie reaches new heights. I will probably have a dream tonight in which my enthusiasm leads to a catatonic state and I am unable to watch the movie. Oh, the horror!
You would think that my affectionate writing and upbeat attitude could not be curbed. Alas, another part of me exists to tell you that it can. The buzz question of the past month happens to be—which character are you going to dress up as? [Clarification: this is a prevalent question in the life of the author to this blog...I also gather it is quite trendy in the generation of people born post 1990.] My response has been somewhat consistent, “Augh... Stop asking me that question!” Even now, with less than 34 hours to go, I have, for the first time, not chosen a specific character. I would like to blame my increasing age, but that is too weak of an excuse. I would like to blame a busy summer of experiments, but for anyone who has seen me take on a semester + movie + research, then you would know it boils down to mere laziness.
I must end this on a good note. There is still hope!If there is any talent I must own, aside from my Vulcan skills, it is procrastination! We must await another day before the last moment adrenaline rush takes over and I am transformed into a witch/wizard/giant/elf! Happy Harry watching! :D
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