User blog comment:JoePlay/Wizarding World Giveaway/@comment-4141555-20110713114040

Harry Potter was my childhood. Though, ultimately, it's so much more than that. It was such a large part of my life growing up, and I know that it will be the same for my children when I become a parent. I loved growing up with Harry, Ron and Hermione, and finding that I understood so much of what they were experiencing, because I experienced a lot of the same things, as far as the difficulty of growing up, learning the value of friendship and trust, and understanding that love can (literally, in Harry's case) conquer all.

I've spent so much of my life (9 out of the 14 years), being in love with Harry Potter and the world that J.K. Rowling created. It's magical, more so than just the fact that they DO magic. Every time I read the books, they transport me to a completely different world, one that I feel like I belong in just as much as I belong in my own. I can't truly say that I feel as if the books bring me somewhere completely new and fantastic because, at this point, I feel like they bring me to a place that I've been to before, practically lived in, and always will keep revisiting throughout the rest of my life.

Not only have Harry's adventures been my past, but they will be my future too. 30, 40 years from now I will STILL be able to make friends with people over the fact that The Deathly Hallows was our favorite book ever written or that we agree with J.K. Rowling that Rupert Grint is our "favorite ginger". I'm going to ensure that my children read Harry Potter, and maybe even their children after them so that all of their lives can be filled with the same magic that our generation felt.

Harry Potter was my past, it's my present (as I'm anxiously waiting for the new movie!), and it will be a large part of my future as well.