In honor of this day today, I just want to say…thank you, Harry Potter.
Thank you for all of the emotions you brought out in me – all of the intrigue, the excitement, the love, the hate, the sorrow, and the joy.
Thank you for all of the laughter you brought me – from the snappy one-liners of Ron to the wry side-notes of Dumbledore, from the jokes of Fred and George to the over-the-top ridiculousness of Hermione’s obsessive academia.
Thank you for all of the thinking you inspired in me – how you got me theorizing what might happen next, and how you even helped inspire me to write my own stories!
Thank you for introducing me to Ron Weasley – the best friend you could ever have, who would laugh with you, cry with you, and more importantly share his time, feelings, experiences, homework answers, family, and room with you.
Thank you for introducing me to Hermione Granger – the perfect example of a superbly flawed, but powerful female character who proves herself before the whole world as the most brilliant witch of her age.
Thank you for introducing me to Luna Lovegood – a young woman with the wisdom of a sage, the spirit of an angel, and all the social grace of a deer in the headlights.
Thank you for introducing me to Neville Longbottom – a boy terrified of his own shadow who grows into a man braver than his house’s mascot.
Thank you for introducing me to Remus Lupin – the teacher that reminded me of all of my best teachers, the ones who got me excited about learning, and that also revealed himself to be not just a teacher, but something akin to family.
Thank you for introducing me to Sirius Black – a man tarred as a crazed mass-murderer but who in truth both loves and hates with all of his heart and would die rather than betray his friends.
Thank you for introducing me to Minerva McGonagall – the most bad-ass teacher on the face of the earth. And yes, I will fight you on that. *snaps fingers*
Thank you for introducing me to Rubeus Hagrid – someone I would probably hate having as a teacher in real life, but who because I’ve seen him as gamekeeper and friend for so long I couldn’t help but forgive.
Thank you for introducing me to Draco Malfoy – the most obnoxious, arrogant, self-centered, mean-spirited, petty, immature bouncing ferret ever!
Thank you for introducing me to Regulus Black – a character who we barely get to know, and yet whose sacrifice is moving enough that it helps redeem Slytherin house itself.
Thank you for introducing me to Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy – a couple I loathed for so long, only to find shades of gray in them I could never have comprehended.
Thank you for introducing me to Albus Dumbledore – a man whom I respected for so long, only to find shades of gray in him I could never have comprehended.
Thank you for introducing me to Severus Snape – no one else could have better taught me the value in writing multi-faceted, complex, morally gray characters.
Thank you for introducing me to Cedric Diggory – a true Hufflepuff and a true hero, taken all too soon.
Thank you for introducing me to Fred and George Weasley – the truest mischief makers, and also some of the most brilliant.
Thank you for introducing me to Dudley Dursley – everything I loathe in humankind instilled into one person, only for him to redeem himself in one short, truly honest meeting of the minds between him and Harry.
Thank you for introducing me to Gilderoy Lockhart – how I laughed at this man, and yet how much I longed to slap him in the face!
Thank you for introducing me to Cornelius Fudge – a politician who seemed right at home in my own world, as I ventured into the world of politics.
Thank you for introducing me to Dolores Umbridge – a character the likes of which I will likely loathe more than any other fictional being in any universe.
Thank you for introducing me to Horace Slughorn – a teacher at Hogwarts I think I would’ve enjoyed knowing almost more than any other, if only to hear some of his amazing stories.
Thank you for introducing me to Arthur and Molly Weasley – a couple that made me laugh and made me hug myself to keep in all the “awwww”s.
Thank you for introducing me to Tom Marvolo Riddle – a boy with many talents and no love in his soul who grew up to terrorize the world.
And most of all…thank you for introducing me to Harry. Brave Harry. Rash Harry. Selfless Harry. Snarky Harry. Lonely, awkward, modest, athletic, sneaky, clever, thoughtful, angsty, hot-tempered, heroic, academically lazy Harry. Harry, who hides in the bushes under an open window to listen to the news. Harry, who starts chatting it up with a snake in a reptile house. Harry, who without skipping a beat chooses a poor boy offering nothing but honest friendship over a rich boy offering to help him elevate himself.
How many ways can I say “thank you”, Harry Potter? You have changed me in too many ways. You’ve changed the way I write, both in sentence structure and how I write plot and characters. You’ve changed the way I analyze stories. You’ve changed the way I define myself, by introducing Hogwarts houses!
I suppose all I can really say is…you’ll be with me. Until the end.