User blog comment:JoePlay/Wizarding World Giveaway/@comment-4203561-20110726070214

Harry Potter. Telling someone what it means to me is something that is a bit hard to do. Whenever I watched the first movie, I was six years old. It was on VCR, rented from Blockbuster. As I was watching it, I became entranced in this new world. I didn't quite understand what exactly was going on, but the three-headed dog named Fluffy definitely caught my attention. My parents noticed how much I enjoyed the movie, so they decided to get my all of the books that were already out. My mom would read me a chapter out of the Sorcerer's Stone every night before bed. I still didn't quite catch what was going on at that age, but as I progressed in school, I couldn't help but feel the urge to learn to read so that I could read the books for myself. More movies came out and they continued to amaze me. By the third book, I was able to understand and read what was going on in the story. I started reading out loud to my mom and she would read Hagrid's parts because his slang was kind of funky. I started growing up and I just couldn't stop reading and keeping up with the movies. I dressed up for the 5th movie with a Ron t-shirt and a Voldemort wand. Once the 7th book came out, I read it within two days, hardly stopping to sleep or eat in between. For the movies 5-7, I went to every midnight premiere.

Harry Potter isn't just a fictional book that Rowling created. It's an entirely different world. And I grew up in that world. Everything seems to be alright whenever Harry Potter comes to save the day, or when Hermione Granger knows what's going on finally. It's like you'll never get judged in that world. They shaped who I am and I love them for that. I thank Rowling for making my childhood the best that it could ever be.

I know the contest is over, but I still felt like sharing my story. Sorry for the huge paragraph, haha.