Like every potterhead, I dreamt of going to Hogwarts, Of getting sorted into a house and living in that magical universe. When asked, what house will you be in, I always answered Gryffindor, I mean why not? all my favourite characters and the very protagonists of the books are from Gryffindor. Every Buzzfeed or any such quiz I took, I would tailor my answers to get the desired results, but like most people I felt like I belonged to different houses on different days, I had my Hufflepuff days of hard work and simple joys, my Ravenclaw days of feeling clever and learning new things and even my Slytherin days of ambition and pride.
So when pottermore launched, I couldn’t wait to get sorted and find out my true house. I promised to answer everything with utmost honesty. I wanted the authentic Hogwarts experience. I went through the sorting experience, and there it was, ‘Congratulations for being sorted into Gryffindor’ the page read.
Everything on my screen turned to a warm shade of red and I couldn’t have been happier. This was it, this was proof that I belonged in Gryffindor. I was absolutely ecstatic
But once the initial euphoria started to die out, doubt started to creep in. Am I really brave? When have I actually been courageous? It seems like an impossible task to measure one’s own bravery until faced by a situation that would demand it. It reminded me of a quote from another favourite book series ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ In the first book ‘A Game of Thrones’ in the initial chapters itself Bran asks Ned Stark ‘‘Can a man still be brave if he’s afraid?’ ‘That is the only time a man can be brave,’ his father told him.”
Really there have been no such situations in my life where I could have thrust myself forward without a thought to my own safety. Sadly I’ve led a very safe and cushy life. But then It dawned on me, there are different kinds of bravery and I would like to think I qualify for some of the smaller victories. To be brave enough to put on a smile for a friend after having a particularly bad day or to be brave enough to admit my own faults when I could have turned a blind eye to them. Plus Gryffindor is more than just bravery, it is loyalty as shown by Ron and Neville. It is friendship as our trio have demonstrated time and time again and I thought to myself, Yes I can definitely be a Gryffindor and proudly join the leagues of Albus Dumbledor, Minerva Mcgonagall, The Marauders, Harry, Hermione, Ron and Neville.
Biblio Witch 