A few loose ends

I had a couple of more small thoughts on ol' Harry Potter- and an option for a future blog to be named later concerning HP fans and Biblical scholarship (got you curious, don't I?), and then we'll be done with this topic- or else I might get co-opted into on of those online editorial HP sites...

1) Why does Tom, the barman at the Leaky Cauldron, say "Welcome back" to Harry when he and Hagrid show up at the bar for what is in Harry's mind, his first time? Either its a generic "welcome back" to the wizarding world, or this is a comment that Harry has been there before- perhaps in that 24 missing hours between his parent's death and his arrival at 4 Privet Dr.
2) I stay with my theory that the 7th book will return to the 1st book in a lot of ways. Take this bit- A great deal of description is given about Grigott's wizarding bank in Sorcerer's Stone. Especially how an average person would get lost in the maze below ground and die trying to escape. Also, Dumbledore says he has a scar above his left knee that is quite useful, as it is a full map of the London Underground. Since most wizards have no need of public Muggle transportation (the subway Underground) could it be he was referring to a map of Gringotts? I think this is true, since the UK cover of Deathly Hallows shows Harry, Ron and Hermione landing in a treasure trove with a goblin (or maybe a house elf) holding a sword (Griffyndors?) and riding on Harry's back. Why wouldn't Voldemort put at least one treasure (horcrux) in a deeply exclusive vault inside Gringotts? Since the goblins are at best neutral, and have been dark-leaning in the past, it wouldn't be surprising that they wouldn't care if Voldemort used their bank like any other. After all, how did Quirrellmort find his way in there and out when he tried to steal the stone? And with Bill Weasley(and Fleur) as a Gringott's employee there is a way in the door for sure.
3) The US cover of Deathly Hallows bears out at least one of my friend Susan's ideas about the plot (and all points should be given to her for parsing this out of editorials and the like). It seems to show Harry, being chased by the outstretched hand of Voldemort, having passed behind the veil in the atrium in the Dept. of Mysteries. There is an atrium/coliseum around him, with shadowy figures of those who's voices Harry heard before, his loved ones who predeceased him. It appears as if Susan's theory of Harry going through the veil is indeed a good one- now if we can figure out what he has in the little amulet/bag around his neck. Judge for yourself- here is the picture.

OK, that's enough for now. I'm still working on my aforementioned Bible-HP correlation.

Ending Where It Began

I have a confession. I resisted a long time-but I am a Harry Potter fan. I have read all the books, I've seen the movies. I am even contemplating staying up 'til midnight, July 21st so that I can get the last book in the series-The Deathly Hallows. I know. It's a little extreme. There are lots of people in my situation though- and I suspect many of them actually want the book themselves but say they just go to the midnight release so "the kids can get one". I have resisted letting my boys get into Harry Potter because of the dark overtones and violence. I don't think it will affect them as much now- but as it is written for 10-12 year olds in mind, I think I'll wait until they are a little closer to that age.

I think some of the things that interest me about the series include the nice mix of real life teenage angst, a well constructed magical world (that uses lots of Latin spells) and just enough mystery to keep you interested. Trying to figure out a mystery appeals to lots of us- and the fact that there are clues in 7 different books makes it more of like a conspiracy theory- and nothing gets me hooked like a good intrique story. So, I've formulated a little theory of my own.
So there are seven books, and they are circular in nature. Book 4 is in the center- Goblet of Fire is the book where Voldemort regains a physical body, the one he lost in Book 1, and will have something happen to in Book 7- The Quidditch World Cup and the Tri-wizard tournament both are things that only happen every once in while- not every year. It of course has characters and elements from other books- but the whole Barty Crouch story and so forth is pretty stand alone. Book 4 is a pivotal, centering book in the middle of the chain.

Books 3 and 5 (Prisoner of Azkaban and Order of the Phoenix) were all about Sirius Black. His reunion with Harry, his history, his family, and his demise. Lupin is also a major player in these 2 books. Again, other things were at work, but this just focuses on the major themes. Books 2 and 6 are all about Tom Riddle/Voldemort. Chamber of Secrets is all about Hogwarts when Tom Riddle was there, parselmouth, the Big snake and Voldemort trying to regain power through his horcrux. Half Blood Prince spends considerable time focusing on parselmouth, Riddle's history, his family, his big snake and again, his horcruxes (and the destruction thereof).
So that leaves us with Books 1 and 7- Sorcerer's Stone and Deathly Hallows. It will end where it started. Many think that is Godric's Hollow- where Harry's parents were killed and where Voldemort lost his bodily form. I do think Godric's Hollow will be significant- and that Harry will find and/or destroy a Horcrux there. I think Bill and Fleur's wedding will remind Harry of something he saw in a picture of his parents wedding (where Sirius was best man) and something he can find at Godric's Hollow. But mostly, (and this is my big theory here) I think the story will end up on Privet drive. PRIVET Drive? Where nothing magical ever happens? Where the dreaded Dursleys live?

Here's my thoughts- the first book starts on Privet drive, focused on the Dursleys- seeing the magical world through their eyes. Almost all of the major characters have been there at one time or another to pick up Harry- and Dumbledore has admittedly put strong enchantments around the house for Harry's protection. Rowling has already let us know that Petunia will play a significant role in Book 7- and also that Harry having his mother's eyes is important. There is something about the family connection that will play a major role. In the first chapter, there are two important passages I picked out. One is that the Durselys and Potters hadn't met "for several years"- at least since before they had children (as they had never seen Harry). But since Dumbledore knew of the Durselys existence, and location, there must have been some interaction at some point. And I am guessing that it was not so positive since Petunia and Vernon BOTH hated magic and anything to do with it. Vernon also asks Petunia if she'd heard from her sister lately- as if maybe Lily communicated with Petunia every once in awhile- they obviously knew Lily and James had a son- they had a nephew, even if Vernon couldn't remember his name. There had to be communication of some sort (which may explain Vernon's discomfort at the report of owls all over England).

The second passage is right at the end of chapter 1, as Harry goes to sleep on the doorstep of # 4, Rowling describes Privet Drive this way "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." So, I think at some point before Harry was born, Lily gave Petunia something significant- a Griffyndor or Ravenclaw relic perhaps, - or something else- because it would be so far out of the magical world- safe from Voldemort's followers and the Dark Lord himself- and Petunia has it squirreled away in some hygenic box deep in a closet. Maybe she gave it as a present when Dudley was born and Petunia regarded it as 'too weird and magical' to have out. As Harry seeks it out- he will find something in the last place he expects it to be- #4 Privet Drive. The other piece that plays into this theory is that Rowling has said someone non-magical in book 7 will accomplish the feat of performing magic late in life- and it will absolutely not be Petunia- but how about Arabella Figg? The squib neighbor of the Dursleys who has revealed herself to Harry and has been watching him for years on Dumbledore's behalf. Will she protect Harry- reveal some spell or apparate- maybe repel the dementors? So, while I don't know what or how- I think I am onto a where- Privet Drive- very last place you would expect astonishing things to happen.

Now, if I can just find where I left my innertube...

So I found myself trolling all over MySpace recently. It’s really an amazing thing. To be able to get a little glimpse into other people’s lives- clicking from one profile to another. Way more info than you ever got from a phone book-some of it in the TMI category. I got started because of a young adult I know who does some missionary work. I was trying to see if she had a blog (she seemed a very likely person to have one) and instead I found her MySpace page. She does have a blog there, but as I am not a registered user, I couldn’t access it. She happened to have been a counselor at the camp I was director for. From her site, I started jumping from old counselor to old counselor- it was great. I have been wondering what has become of everyone and where they are. It was exciting to see who was married, had kids, still lived in their hometown, who had albums coming out, who was getting what advanced degree. Still, there were some I happened across that made me wonder- that had me concerned for their health and well being. I mean, sure, who wouldn’t have a few party pictures on their site at 25? But, when that’s all there is….well, it worries me they have no depth, no grounding- and I feel somehow saddened by that. I do remember though that this is a social site and what someone puts up can’t sum up their whole life. Still, you learn a lot from interests, music, pictures, friends and comments put up there.

This little sojourn also makes me nostalgic and missing the time when I thought I could relate to and maybe even influence young people. This is a recurring theme lately- a look back on what I used to do (and who I was) and a look forward at where I’m heading. I don’t see a future that looks anything like the past. That is fine- and I shouldn’t count God out of it, he may put me back in youth ministry yet. For now, though, it has been 5 years since I did any full-time youth ministry, and I think that chapter of my life is closing. It does make me a little sad and longing for what I used to do/be. It seems easier to go back to that rather than coming up with a new direction.

I guess it also touches this thing I have with current culture. As I get older, I have shifted out of the mainstream and am now more in the safe shallows. If life were a water park, I’d be moving from the “Twister Flume Tunnel of Zoom” into more of the “Lazy River” attraction. I know what’s going on in the culture, for the most part, but I just don’t want to engage it. I understand the trends and fads, I just don’t like them. Is it sad I have better relationships with 5 year olds than I do with 15 year olds now? Maybe it is just my own little sliver of fragmented postmodernism that keeps its own self out of synch. But sometimes I do long for one last ride in the cool zone- I mean, I toyed with the idea of starting my own MySpace page- catching up with all those ex-camp people and saying hey- and then I realize that would be a bit pathetic. From what I can tell, MySpace isn’t inhabited by many over 35 year olds; I would be a visitor at best. No, I’ll continue to lurk and catch a glimpse of what life as a 28 year old is like these days, but keep my old self out of the way. But, I do think I will buy the new CD coming out by a few of them…it’s really good!

Prayer

So, I've been thinking about prayer. I know, it'd be a better use of my time to just actually pray. I try to pray each day, to be intentional about some time to talk to God. That doesn't count the random thoughts that fly through my head that might be remotely considered prayers. I still subscribe to the old formula of addressing God, asking a few things, saying Amen. That's not to say I haven't had some really powerful prayer times that involved me sitting on a mountaintop watching a thunderstorm come in, or sitting on a floor in a dark chapel with music and candles around. There have even been really cool times watching my kids that have been filled with the presence of God- and the thankfulness in my heart has felt an awful lot like prayer and praise.

Still, I think there is something about regular prayer that invites routine and dare I say it, structure. Some of my most satisfying prayer times have involved me writing my prayers, much like a letter to God, and then just sitting there for awhile- listening, stopping, being. I try to follow the A.C.T.S. formula of prayer:
A-Adoration (telling God how good he is-and what cool stuff he makes)
C-Confession (those places we screw up; and asking for forgiveness)
T-Thanksgiving (well, you know, being thankful)
S-Supplication (asking for help, guidance, healing, etc)
followed by quiet, listening time. That's what works for me- when I can find the time to do that!

What works for you? What is your best time of day-place you pray? Tips? Feedback? LL

TiVo stands for Television InadVertantly Operated

Or maybe some other catchy acronym to describe how since we hooked up TiVo it has become a possessed self regulatory independent electronic beast in our bonus room. Disclaimer: We received TiVo and a year's service as a Christmas present from George's brother. While we like the idea, its not a gadget we were dying to get, but since everyone seems to love it enough to use it as a verb, we thought we'd try it out. It started innocently enough- set it up one night when the kids were out...nothing says loving like sharing a booklet of technological instructons. Then came the experiments to make sure it worked- TiVoing a few kids shows, a series we might like to watch (which explains why its been cancelled) and the like. All is well. What we want Dvr'ed is getting recorded.
The odd part comes when we start looking over our "Now playing" list and seeing all these random programs being recorded. Nickolodeon shows, Disney shows, Full House on Nick at Night, NFL today in March. I mean the list is long- two 'pages' of shows recorded in just two days. The one show that we designated with a "Season pass" (so it will record the episode each week) is working fine, although it can't seem to figure out when they pulled the show and put a cop drama in its place. Somehow, when we ask it to record one show,and one show only, it does so, but then starts acting of its own free will. Its this weird HAL/2001 thing- "I think Dave liked this show, so I'll record another just like it." The weirdest part is I can't find ANY setting to turn this function off (and I have looked at every option in every menu). It appears to be operating on its own. So, until we figure it out, we'll just have to keep deleting the random Dora the explorer shows, the Tanner family love fests of Full House and random Anime features from cartoon network. At least it hasn't started accessing Lifetime, celebrity poker shows, C-span, or some porn channel--Yet. Small favors. Anyone have any ideas?