One summer at camp we were on a campout. The older girls had this really creepy campsite called Arrowhead, like a half a mile away from the main campground. It was surrounded on 3 sides by woods. But man, the stars. They were so bright!
Anyway this one night back in 2008 all of us counselors were sitting around the fire while our kids slept away when we heard branches breaking in the woods. My friend Beth, who was like the head counselor, had us all stand between the sleeping girls and the woods, holding hands and praying as she investigated the noise, armed only with her headlamp.
At first I stood behind everyone because COME ON, WHAT IF IT WAS A BEAR! Right?
Then something snapped inside of me and I thought… no, if something is coming for these girls, they are gonna have to get through me. So I charged into the woods, throwing rocks as hard as I could. It was probably just a deer, you know? But then Beth decided that the staff members should all sleep around the campers, creating a barrier between them and the woods. She and I picked the side that was closest to the woods.
It was the first time in my life I ever really felt brave. and since then I’ve seen moments – sometimes very brief, insignificant moments – where I’ve been brave. and it’s always, only when it matters the most. I’m never brave when there are a handful of other brave people and I can just kind of stand back and be a sissy.
Whenever I do one of those online Sorting Hat quizzes – which is more often than I’d care to admit – I always get sorted into Gryffindor. But I am like the Neville Longbottom of Gryffindor.Usually underestimated but brilliant in times of dire need.
All of this is brought to you by the emotions stirred up by this article:
Neville Longbottom is the most important person in Harry Potter.
Which Harry Potter character do you identify with the most?
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