My Harry Potter addiction :) Part One

***WARNING! THIS DOES CONTAIN A FEW SPOILERS. SO AGAIN, IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE BOOKS OR SEEN THE MOVIES, I TAKE NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR RUINING ANYTHING!!*** 

So when I was little, and I mean really little, I hated reading. I just did not like it. It's not that I couldn't read, I just didn't want to. My first grade teacher didn't help either, she never liked me for some reason (I got along with all of my teachers during my school years except two, my first grade teacher and my middle school gym teacher), my parents think it might've had something to do with my dad and his brother and sister from when they were in school...... Anyways, that teacher did give my mom and I this bagful of books for me to read and try to get interested in. So I guess in a weird unnoticed kind of way she did care, she just didn't show it very well.

So when I was in fourth grade, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone came out. My mom bought the book for me after I wouldn't stop begging her for it (I did this frequently but never read the books she bought). Basically she gave in. I remember reading it. I know exactly where I was when I finished it and I remember that it took me exactly one week to read it. The first chapter was the hardest to get through, but after that I loved reading it. From then on I was a different girl.

I read everything I could get my hands on. That book really opened me up to a whole new world of possibilities. Ever since then, I've been lost in a world of witches and wizards who dealt with many of the same problems I've dealt with, heady romances that made me wish I was the half naked girl on the cover, and stories that convinced me that I couldn't sleep without a bat or the lights off. Because of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, I read all the time.

Now about my addiction. Ha, this is going to be fun. I cannot express, through words, just how much I LOVE HARRY POTTER!!! The series is so much more than just magic. It's about all different kinds of love, from parental to friendship. It shows how important mother's are, and not just Harry's mom either. Molly Weasley, Narcissa Malfoy, and even Merope Riddle, are so important to the story, and each character just shows the different influences mother's can have in their child's life just by the choices they make. Okay, from here on out, I'm going to assume you've read all of the books. If you haven't, I warn you there WILL BE spoilers, so proceed at your discretion.

Molly Weasley proves that a woman can be a stay at home mom, and work at least just as hard as any working woman out there. She completely embodies the perfect mother. She's loving, considerate, stern when needed, warm, inviting, strong, and can kick anyone's ass who even threatens the lives of her babies. She is simply amazing. She IS the mother I try to be every day.

Lily Potter plays a very important part as well. Yeah, I know she wasn't really bodily in the books, but she is there on every page. Because of her love for her son, she sacrificed her own life to save his. Because of her love for her son he was able to live a full life. Even though she died before page one of the first book, she influenced almost everything Harry did. He was able to love others regardless or their flaws, because of her love for him. He was able to resist evil but understand why evil exists and how it works, because of her love. He looked like his father, but he was Lily's character in life.

Narcissa Malfoy. Most people were surprised by her, I know I was. She is very much like her husband; closed minded, evil thoughts and actions, selfish, and self absorbed. And then Voldemort tried to kill Harry in the woods in the last book. In a way, I wasn't surprised. She did exactly what every mother should in that situation. She risked her life to save her son's. Just like Lily. She lied to the most skilled Legilmins, the most evil wizard, and the man she endorsed her whole life. Her love for her son showed just how vulnerable and human she is. From that scene alone, you can see that she really isn't like her husband at all. Lucius is cold hearted, unfeeling, selfish, vain, and closed minded. Narcissa's love makes her more like the other mom's in the story, with the result that by the end of the book, you sympathize with her and relate to her more than you could have ever imagined.

Merope Riddle (maiden name Gaunt), was Voldemort's (Tom) mom. Merope confuses me. She is probably the pitiable character in the book. Constantly abused and belittled by her father and brother, you can't help but feel bad for her. She is unattractive, slightly deformed from incest parents, and almost a squib when under her father's control. And I do still feel bad for her, her situation was hopeless. But she didn't think of her child first. When her muggle husband left her after she removed the love potion hold on him, she succumbed to poverty and depression. And then when it came time for her child to be born, she arrived on the doorstep of an orphanage for help, and died delivering him, only saying the words needed to name her newborn son. She died from a broken heart, her will to live gone. Merope failed to see hope, love, and a future with her son. She failed to form that very very very important bond between the mother and her child. Because of this failed bond, Tom grew up to be Voldemort. He didn't have the ability to love, having never been loved himself, and because of that, he never understood the powers that love has over people and he feared and underestimated it. Rowling made a huge statement with the death of Merope; without a mother's love, there's very little hope for the child. The child will not have that unbreakable bond of love between him and his mom, and he will never be able to live a full, happy life because of it. I have seen countless children who have mother's that don't care about them. They spend their whole life trying to gain the mom's attention, affection, and develop that strong bond of love. They have such a dramatic adult life as well. Their bonds with other people are more complex and not as stable, and they tend to have problems with trusting other people as well. J.K. Rowling is the founder of a charity titled Lumos. Their vision is to make sure that 'all children have the opportunity to grow up in a safe and caring family environment or, where there is no alternative, in specialist services that meet all their needs, respect their rights and ensure they can fulfill their potential.' To learn more about this amazing charity, visit http://www.lumos.org.uk/

I know I didn't mention her above, but Nymphadora Tonks also makes this cut. She wasn't a mother herself until Deathly Hallows. She married a man who didn't think he deserved her, who is generally shunned by society, and who is much older than her. But she married anyways, because of her love for him. Because Tonks isn't one of the major characters, I am going to give a little background on her. She is a Metamorphmagus, she's funny, caring, klutzy, and very talented. Tonks is probably the happiest person in the whole series. She emanates a sunny glow that everyone around her can feel. I think the Rowling decided to make her a Metamorphmagus because Tonks doesn't hide her feelings very well at all. When she's happy, everyone around is happy, she laughs, cracks jokes, changes her form for humor, and is very talkative. When she's unhappy, she doesn't say much, loses focus, and basically acts like a gray rainy cloud. But back to her being a mother. She had given birth to a cute, bouncy, Metamorphmagus son whose hair had started changing colors within the first hour of his life. Teddy Lupin grew up a lot like Harry had, but in a much happier environment. His parents had died in a battle against Voldemort at Hogwarts. He was also raised by a family member, his father was a maurader with James Potter, and both were in infancy when they were orphaned, Also like Harry, because of his mother's love for him, he grew up to be whole and happy. Tonks' motherhood isn't mentioned much, but it goes without saying (though I will say it), that based on her character, she was also a perfect mom, with an immense amount of love for her child.

I think that will be it for now, although I feel like I was sidetracked a little bit. And I might go back and add things in a later post because I'm pretty tired right now and my brain feels foggy. But leave your comments telling me why you love Harry Potter! Have a nice day everyone! :)