User blog comment:JoePlay/Wizarding World Giveaway/@comment-4152689-20110715223905

I did not grow up with Harry Potter. I did not even want to read the books at first... but then one day, after the 300th time my best friend insisted I give them a chance, I gave in.

At nearly twenty-seven years old, I am just truly starting to appreciate the true message of the stories. It's not just about dueling dark wizards and chasing dragons, though admittedly, both of those things sound pretty cool.

More than anything, Harry Potter's journey is the story of love. Harry and Snape both laid down their lives for love. Harry Potter also teaches kids about courage, loyalty, and the power of friendship. However, what Harry Potter's story means to me is this: J.K. Rowling built a world that challenged my imagination and created characters that I love and miss as if they were flesh and blood... but more than that, the Wizarding World makes one believe that anything is possible...

It's more than a story to me, it's become a part of who I am... Harry, Hermione, and Ron aren't just words on a page; they are inside of me. They inspire me to create my own worlds and my own characters. They challenge me to be the best I can be. They push me to be braver, stronger, smarter, and most importantly, to never give up. They inspire me to fight for those I love, to march beside my best friend in his struggle for gay rights, to be the strength for my mother when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. When things were hard in my life, I remembered the lessons instilled in me, and remembered that above all else, I am blessed, because I have so many people who love me.

Harry Potter truly does mean the word to me, but not because I like reading the books, or watching the movies... It's because of what it's taught me. I am not afraid when life is tough. Albus Dumbledore once said, "I am not worried, Harry, I am with you." In a sense, the same is true for me... I am not worried because Harry has taught me that I carry the ones I love with me. Wherever I am, wherever they are, we have one another, because the bonds of love are stronger than any spell, stronger than words, stronger than hardship, even stronger than death.

Harry Potter has helped me truly realize that... and that means the world to me.