i want to marry ronald weasley;

Today was Menglan's and Shaoyong's ROM at this serene and tranquil place, deep within the rural area of Kranji. Menglan said that it is a country club, and I must say, it is really a unique one. The whole place looks like a page out of a holiday brochure of Bali; with trees, plants, and interesting artifacts decorating the area. What I really love about the venue was the intimacy with nature that it brings to people, and I thought it was a great place to hold her ROM.

Menglan and Shaoyong looked absolutely wonderful today, and the vows they exchanged was really touching;

"..I give you my hand, my heart and my love. I eagerly anticipate the chance to grow old together, getting to know the women/man you will become and falling in love a little more everyday.."

Menglan was stunning in her gown, which suits her sweet, petite style perfectly. And she was taller than me today because of her heels! Jingwen looked gorgeous too, and this cute friend of mine totally plunged herself high into the air to catch the bouquet of flowers that Menglan threw! I tell you, she is going to be one of the most happening bridesmaid in the world. Haha.

Its indeed an amazing feeling and experience to see your good friend tying the knot. I pray that they would be happy together, and that the love they have for each other would weather them through the storms of life, and that this love would be boundless, sacrificing and unconditional.

As we speak of love, I'm reminded of another great love of mine, and that is Harry Potter! The Harry Potter books and movies have been very much part of my life (basically it revolved around HALF of my life), as I kind of grew up with it. The books are one of the best I've ever laid hands on and reading it over and over again never fails to captivate me. It is just so amazing how the books touched my life in such a deep way.

So, how did I came across J.K Rowling books? Well, it was a twist of fate really. I've always enjoyed reading books since young (Babysitters' Club, Sweet Valley High etc). For my 11th birthday, daddy brought me to Borders because he wanted to get me a book for my birthday present. He spotted the Harry Potter series (then it was the only first 4 books) and he told me that these books seemed interesting, and that maybe I would like to get it. I took one good look at the Harry Potter books on the rotating shelf, scrunched up my face in distaste and said no way! If I were to teleport back now to say hello to the 11 years old me, I would have slept her hard! So in the end, I got this nonfiction book on Egyptians and their secrets on building the pyramids. That abysmal decision robbed me off more time to discover the magical world of Harry Potter :(

But then a few months after, dad bought Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone vcd home for us to watch. I did not expect much from the movie at all, but immediately when the movie began, I got so hooked and captivated by it, I actually dreamed about it that very night. The movie was the very beginning of my obsession with Harry Potter. I was dying to read the books, and I was overjoyed when I found out that a bookshop on my way home from school was actually selling the Harry Potter books. Can you imagine how meager a Primary Five kid's pocket money is? I actually save up bit by bit just to buy the second, third and fourth installments of Harry Potter. I still remember the excitement that was bubbling in me when I finally saved enough to buy Chambers of Secrets, and how I plunged myself straight into the book, feeling so belonged in the world of witches and wizards.

Dad bought the subsequent three books for me, because it was like fifty over bucks when it was first released into the bookstores, and I am certainly not going to wait for the price to drop before purchasing them to read and I am definitely not going to borrow the books from people to read, because I want the books to be mine when I read them so that it will be more special and significant to me. So I brought the books to class and read them under the table, totally oblivious to the teachers' droning voices and my classmates' chatter. Haha.

The Harry Potter movies also captivated me as much, and I forgive the directors for not being able to follow the storyline as closely as that of the books, because really, the plot of the books is complicated and it twists and turns alot, and if you were to put every single scene into the movie, it would probably get too draggy and confusing. I love the movies because of the ability of the director to bring the magical world of Hogwarts into "reality'. Seeing Diagon Alley as it is on the big screen really gave me goosebumps (in a good way of course), and watching the Quidditch game really blew my mind away. I mean, when I read the books, I imagine all these scenes, actions and characters in my mind. And seeing them in flesh and material on screen kind of make my imagination more real in a sense. Of course, there were times when I got disappointed because they miss out a scene I thought was important, or the actors playing the characters just dont look like the part. But all in all, the movies are still awesome and as Barney would proclaim, LEGENDARY! And I am anticipating Deathly Hallows so much so that I am pretty emotional about it and am finding myself talking and thinking alot about Harry Potter.

 My favourite character in Harry Potter to date is not Harry Potter, but Ronald Weasley, or more famously known as Ron. Having flaming red hair is definitely a pull factor for one. Haha. But more than that, Ron is a loyal friend with truly a kind heart. Yes, he may be immature and his words may lack tact most of the time, but it is very much so because he is the youngest male Weasley, and very often, he finds himself being overshadowed by his brothers, Harry Potter and even Hermione. All these leads him to feel very insecure and inadequate about himself. However, he tries very hard to downplay his negative self-image, and does his best in helping Harry through his trials and problems, even at the expense of his safety. Ron is also very humorous, and adopts a laid-back attitude when doing things, which reminds me of me!

While he may have fell out with Harry in at least two occasions, he always came back, apologised, and learn to be a better person and friend from there. Ron may also appear to be a little insensitive and mean to people at times, but deep down, he has a soft heart, and I guess he probably wants to hide that side of him because of his insecurity. You can tell from his concern with Scabbers his rat when it went missing, and his protectiveness towards Ginny his little sister. I guess why I like Ron so much is because despite his obvious flaws, he does not let them get the better of him, and he strives to be a better and more responsible person each time. As the story progresses, you can tell how Ron slowly matures into a man, still funny and nonsensical at times, yes, but then, he begins to take charge of situations and his emotions better. I guess Ron is the epitome of a real growing teenager, who is discovering the importance of friendship and loyalty, struggling with peer pressure in school, experiencing the negativity of insecurities and learning to be responsible for things in life through trials and error.

I used to wish and pray for a letter from Hogwarts to find its way into my mailbox. Now at twenty, I've long since given up hope. But deep down in me, I still believe that the world of Harry Potter actually exists! I know it sounds silly, but each time I read the books, I cant help but feel how real each characters are.

I could really go on and on about Harry Potter, but its getting really late, so I'd sign off here. I hope I wont cry during the movie tomorrow! Haha.

P.S If there's a guy I want to marry, it would be Ron Weasley. I hate you Hermoine, you're so lucky!

turtle,
18nov10,1245am