From a young age, I proved myself to have an obsessive personality. My childhood obsessions included American Girl dolls, space and astronomy and "Lilo and Stitch." The two biggest obsessions that I remember, however, were "Harry Potter" and "Star Wars."
My childhood favorite movie was "Lilo and Stitch." I vaguely resembled Lilo, with my long dark hair, big brown eyes, and tanned skin. I also had moved from Hawaii about three years before the movie came out, and I was missing the islands. Watching a movie about a little girl living in Hawaii was the perfect thing for me at that age, and I soon grew obsessed. I had countless dolls and books about the movie, as well as all of the sequels. I was Lilo for Halloween one year and Stitch another year. I actually believe I dragged my father to the theater three times to see it. I'm also planning on getting a "Lilo and Stitch" tattoo one of these days.
My second obsession was the "Star Wars" saga. I know many of you (my entire three readers) will hate me for this, but I actually liked the prequels more than the originals. As I've gotten older, I've developed a love for "Return of the Jedi," partially due to Leia being an incredibly strong character. I had a ton of books from the extended universe, extending from the Yoda/Dooku days to the post-Empire days (obviously before "The Force Awakens" was even conceived). I had my own lightsaber and was a Jedi for Halloween one year. I had a favorite character (Obi-Wan), a favorite ship (Millennium Falcon), and a favorite movie ("Phantom Menace" because Liam Neeson).
When I was 11 years old, I realized there was something wrong with me. I never wanted to do anything and was never happy. Eight years later, my doctor began to suspect my depression was truly bipolar disorder. A year later, a mood tracker confirmed my doctor's suspicions. I soon read online that my favorite childhood character, Leia, also had bipolar disorder. The more I read about actress Carrie Fisher's struggle with the disorder, the more I realized that I could not let this define me.
My last childhood obsession (before I turned 13 and it became a teenage obsession) was "Harry Potter." I began reading the "Twilight" saga at summer camp, when a girl in my cabin confiscated it and replaced it with "Harry Potter." She told me that I could have "Twilight" back when I finished the first "Harry Potter." Two nights later I returned the book and, in addition to requesting "Twilight" back (as it was a summer reading book), I also requested the next "Harry Potter" book. I quickly befriended this girl and we remain friends to this day.
I still have a large collection of "Harry Potter" paraphernalia. I have two wands, every book, every movie, a Snuggie, a small stuffed Hedwig, and countless books, like "Quidditch Through the Ages" and poster books, cookbooks and a coloring book. I have forced my sister to name her stuffed animals after "Harry Potter" characters and wore my Hufflepuff t-shirt with pride. When I was sorted into the Hufflepuff house, I learned that my biggest strengths were the key traits of the house. While it isn't the house of bravery, ambition, or study, it was the house of the loyal, the kind, and the strong.
Essentially, I grew up a nerd and am proud to say I am still a nerd. I love to learn and I love to read. I love to watch fun shows and I love to be able to regurgitate strange facts. I can almost recite Churchill's "Fight on the Beaches" speech (another person with bipolar disorder) and I can tell you almost anything about Harry Potter, to this day. I love being a nerd, and I strongly believe it got me through everything.
