2022.07.31

About six years ago, first catching a glimpse into the Wizarding World. From movies to books to derivatives and to English. Two years ago, started sending stuff to mark the day. Still remember using Youdao to translate a passage from the Internet on the first year due to low English level, but in fact one never needs magnificent sentences to express true emotions, which also works well in many other occasions.

When first entered the online world in primary school, mostly on Tieba, being childish and ignorant, I eagerly joined the discussion, mostly with peers, and read lots of supplemental information, gradually becoming more familiar in the area. At that time, there were still many people discussing serious questions about characters of characters or other interesting details, though the most glorious years of the topic would be around 2009. There were indeed lots of things to be read.

As I grew older and wiser, I learned to keep silent to avoid unnecessary conflicts, probably along with many people else. At the same time, more fan fictions replaced the traditional discussions, and more kids, even younger and more arrogant than me at that time, kept asking and discussing without even finishing the books and movies for even one time. Plus, many of them are just interested in those cps or some characters without proper and comprehensive knowledge of them. I'm not saying it's all bad, but find it annoyingly irresponsible to act like an expert or a know-nothing beginner, rather than go back to the books to seek answers by themselves. Too superficial.

I'm the kind of people that would stick to something once getting fond of it. Therefore, I can immodestly say that I have gained a rather deep understanding in the area, by a mass amount of time devoted in it. During primary school, I read the Chinese versions over and over again, over 10 times on average, for every one of the seven books, gaining deep memory of the plots and contents. Then in 7th grade, Miss Huang borrowed my Chinese ones for her daughter, and I was left with only English ones. When I opened them, I fell in love with them. The ingeniously conceived plot, as well as and perhaps more importantly, the charm of the language itself. Now, I'm reading them the fourth time, still being able to find countless points of excitement. Till this period, I don't have any personal emotion for any of the characters, but have learned the complication of everyone and do merely analyze, not judge.

Unfortunately, fewer and fewer would like to spend much time on the books, or to pursue its plain and original value. It is almost without doubt that no more than three among all who read this would see "Weasley cannot save a thing, he can't block a single ring" and continue with a large smile: "That's why Slytherin's all sing, Weasley is our king", or to be amused by "The rare gifts with which you were born may come to nothing if not nurtured and honed by careful instruction… The treasure trove of magical knowledge amassed by our ancestors must be guarded, and polished by those who have been called to the noble profession of teaching", or to admire the hidden meaning of "the difference between being dragged into the arena to face a battle to the death and walking into the arena with your head held high" or the power of Erised, nor would many spend hours appreciating and mimic the classic lines in the movies, like "Tell me, what would I get if I added root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood", or "Sentimental children forever whining about how bitterly unfair your lives have been", or "Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light," or watch the Fantastic Beasts 3 and recognize the flying Bludger or the background music from the Philosopher's Stone when Quirrel let a troll in on Halloween, or to memorize a variety of things, such as the character's English names, the spells, and be clearly aware where the character appeared and what they did, and who used the spells on which occasions, or maybe the first several pages of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, which contains almost 2000 words, and so many things that might be laying silent, yet just like my enthusiasm for the series, would never fade, will echo forever.

And it's July 31st once more. Holding the pen ten days on advance, and typing them down seven days before, I don't know what to say. Or maybe, there don't have to be more. "A breeze ruffled the neat hedges of Privet Drive, which lay silent and tidy under the inky sky, the very last place you would expect astonishing things to happen. Harry Potter rolled over inside his blankets without waking up. One small hand closed on the letter beside him and he slept on, not knowing he was special, not knowing he was famous, not knowing he would be woken in a few hours' time by Mrs. Dursley's scream as she opened the front door to put out the milk bottles, nor that he would spend the next few weeks being prodded and pinched by his cousin Dudley…. He couldn't know that at this very moment, people meeting in secret all over the country were holding up their glasses and saying in hushed voices: 'To Harry Potter, the boy who lived!'"

P.S. I plan to use the next three years to create 5 sets of exams, each getting harder, and requires a mark to get to the next level, all in the name of HPCHO. Ones who think they've known the elemental plots, main characters and their experiences, and a rather wide variety of details can inform me and we can find a period of time both suitable for us and send it to you, or rather, better hand the paper on the spot. But be careful, because you have only one chance. If not passing, then you'll never have a second chance to the next level. The first paper is not suggested to attempt when you've only read the books and watched the movies for once, but you may find most of the questions for the first paper on the Internet, maybe not the hardest type, but only a little lower in difficulty, which would be really a piece of cake compared with the other four, of course, and requires a lot of English in HP. Also, I've achieved the first 300-word sentence in my life.

Finally, the cover of the book will last 7 years, as one way to note the process.

2022.07.31