Blog Post #1: I AM GRYFFINDOR!!!

When I first read a book, I normally read it for fun. I tend to never over look anything or catch any of the hints the author drops in the beginning of the book for the ending. I read just because it's something I have always loved. The exception to this rule is Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling wrote this series so wonderfully that I become lost in her magical world. The first time I read the Sorcerer's Stone I could not put it down, and I was in third grade. I had never experienced anything like the Wizarding World and I paid attention to every detail. I knew from the very moment Snape and Malfoy were introduced that I was a Gryffindor and I wanted absolutely nothing to do with them. Growing up I had three brothers so I was used to getting picked on and being left out of things. I never had anyone that I could relate to because I was always the youngest and everyone just told me what to do. I was never abused like Harry or anything, but I knew what it felt like to be lonely. Reading Sorcerer's Stone and Chamber of Secrets provided me with a friend. Someone I could relate to and take an adventure with. A world that allowed me to use my imagination and cast whatever spell I wanted on my oldest brother, theoretically of course. I loved it. To this day, I can sit in a room with all sorts of distractions and not even notice when I read Harry Potter. I'm completely submerged into the Wizarding World rooting for the trio of Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

While reading the Sorcerer's Stone, I wanted Snape to be the villain because I wanted Harry to defeat him. I didn't understand why Snape hated him so much just because of his father. I loved Hermoine and I wanted to be like her, so I took offense every time he would put her down for being an "insufferable know-it-all." In the Chamber of Secrets, I wanted Malfoy to be the heir of Slytherin because he just made me so furious and I wanted Harry to beat him too. I never could relate to either one of those characters because I thought they were just mean to be mean. I didn't ever consider there to be underlying reasons for their cruelty and hatred and that's why I can't relate to them. I can't think of horrible things to say to another person. I'd rather stick up for someone else than put them down. Through the help of my parents and my rather obnoxious brothers, I learned to stick up for myself and that's why I'm a Gryffindor.