There is no doubt that the Harry Potter series has been millions of peoples most loved books. They have been a safe place for readers, and for many of us, we grew up reading them. Many of these characters became our best friends. We laughed with them, cried with them, been angry with them, spent many nights up watching their movies screaming at the television when Dolores Umbridge just wouldn't get the wand out of her ass and leave. For me, one character has stuck with me throughout my entire 19 year long life more than any other. And that is Hermione Granger.

I began reading Harry Potter when I was in about second grade. It was a book full of magical surprises and it was a place my imagination could run free. I always loved Hermione's character; what isn't there to love? She was so talented, kind, witty, and most importantly to me, she was so smart. I looked up to her as a kind of mentor, and I always asked myself, "What would Hermione do?" All the boys in the books were intimidated by her. People looked up to her and even I myself sometimes felt intimidated by how intelligent she was. I felt a certain power coming from her character that I admired so much. I knew that I wanted to be as smart as her, I wanted to be the best just like her, I wanted to be able to say that her character influenced me for the better, and she has.

I felt like I related to Hermione in sometimes not the best of ways. I mainly related to her in the fact that she never had any other real friends besides Harry, Ron, Ginny, and those in the order. She would talk to these other girls, but to me, they just didn't measure up to the friendships she already had. She held these people so close and with such a dedicated kind of love that I wanted someone to have for me one day. She may not have had a ton of friends, but she was an amazing friend to those close to her and would do anything to help them in any situation.

I also loved the fact that Hermione's character was not judged or based off of her looks or her gender. No one ever tried to sexualize her or make a joke about her being a woman, and that's probably because she was smarter and more talented than 90% of the boys at Hogwarts. Even Harry was jealous of her! She was loved because of her kindness, her friendship, her loyalty, her intelligence, not because of her body, how she looked, or how popular she was. And that is exactly what I grew up believing; that being those things was good enough. It helped me a lot when I became insecure about my appearance; Hermione Granger was not a super model nor did she have a ton of friends and she is one the the best witches around! Whenever I would stay in and do homework instead of going out, I thought of how Hermione never went to parties and was very dedicated to her school work just like me, and how it's going to get me very far in the future. Her character motivated me to be strong and never give up, especially when it comes to my math homework that made me wonder if college is worth it many times.

Over the years, Hermione has become more than just a character to me. She's become a mentor, my friend, my motivator, she is someone that I have grown up with and admired like a big sister. Her character has so many strong qualities that many women look up to. I also love that Emma Watson herself is such a strong humanitarian and a strong woman. She exemplifies Hermione in the best ways. She fights for women's rights, equality, peace, and justice and that is exactly the kinds of things Hermione Granger would fight for. That is why Hermione Granger/Emma Watson is my role model. She has made me want to be a better friend, daughter, student, work harder and fight harder than I ever have before. And for that I owe J.K. Rowling and Emma Watson a giant thank you for being there for me, all of my 19 years on this planet.