Happy Birthday JKR and Harry!

I missed marking one of the important July dates on my literary calendar: the 18th was the anniversary of Jane Austen's death. But I didn't want to forget to mark the birthday of author J.K. Rowling, a birthday she shares with her fictional creation Harry Potter.

If my reckoning is right, Harry is 29 today. I always like to picture him sitting up late on his birthday eve, recollecting the midnight birthday reflections of his youth. Some of Harry's birthdays (many of which we got glimpses of) were very important, most especially his eleventh.

Last year I dipped into the archives of things I've written about HP and reprinted an essay in honor of this day. I thought I'd make it a tradition, so went poking about my files. I've not written very much Harry Potter inspired poetry (unlike my wonderfully poetic friend and fellow HP enthusiast Erin!) but I have penned a few poems. Here's one I wrote, post Deathly Hallows, from Ron's perspective. I've prefaced it with some of the original comments I jotted about the poem.

Happy Birthday JKR and Harry!

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One of my favorite scenes in Deathly Hallows (and there are many) is the scene when Ron finally returns to Harry and Hermione. I especially love the moment when he sheepishly says that Dumbledore must have known that he would run out on them, hence the gift of the deluminator. And Harry says, so readily and so graciously (showing a growing wisdom) that no, Dumbledore must have known that Ron would always want to find a way back. What a beautiful insight into Dumbledore and into Ron, and what a wonderful way of looking at his friend and finding the best in him to love.

The deluminator itself is fascinating, perhaps even moreso because we're led to believe Dumbledore invented it. And of course, it's one of the very first magical objects we ever see in the Harry Potter books.

The Gift of the Deluminator

When Dumbledore gave me this gift,
I had no idea of the rift
that would come between Harry and me.

Though I thought that the present was cool,
I’m dense as a general rule --
and the point wasn’t easy to see.

For putting out lights it was great,
but I still thought there must be a mistake,
for what else was this gift really good for?

No doubt we might go undercover
in the dark so we’d not be discovered.
Was that all? I still wasn’t sure.

Of course what I didn’t know
was that darkness inside me would grow
as we toiled so long on our quest,

and that one day I’d balk,
cut ties and just walk
away from the friends I loved best.

How amazing to learn
as I longed to return
that the gift was so wise from the start.

Though it seemed to make night
what it did was move light
to illuminate inside my heart.

That’s how I returned
to the friends I had spurned,
the friends I will always hold dear.

The light led me on
and the way that it shone
made the pathway ahead of me clear.

~EMP