The Final Word
Dear Jo,
You caught us in your spell
As we all wished Harry well
We boarded the Hogwarts Express
What would happen, we couldn’t guess
Alongside Harry we fought
Thanking him for all he taught
We were for him down with Quirrell
Crossing our fingers through the yells
Then Book Two came
We cheered as we heard Harry’s name
Smiled as he was reunited with friends
Hoped Tom, not Harry, would meet his end
You gave us Book Three
And Harry had the chance to be free
We watched him grow;
Meet his godfather, finally know
Then was Goblet of Fire
The book like nothing prior
Full of death; dark
A new journey for Harry to embark
For three years we waited
Wondered, worried, and debated.
What would be in book five?
Who would die, who would survive?
The fans were for Harry the whole way
Even as the Ministry doubted everyday
We sat in shock as Sirius fell
Like Harry, not wanting to bid him farewell
Jo, you had us hooked
Hastily for clues we looked
Half-Blood Prince was coming…
The anxiety was almost numbing
2005-July Sixteen
We headed to bed, lots of caffeine
Again following Harry, Hermione, and Ron
Their lives, we based ours upon
We wondered about that Horcrux
Jo, this plot line was your deluxe
We cried as Dumbledore fell from that tower
Why him, why now, at this important hour?
In the next years, we read and reread
Always worried about what lay ahead.
Who would die?
What was it that made you cry?
All us avid fans counted hours
Until the final book would be ours
We dressed up and left, excited
For something other than tragedy, united.
Cheers rang out as clocks read 12:01
We headed to bed, not to rest till we were done
Hungrily we read, hanging on your every word
Always shocked at what occurred
Those characters we mourned…
Why, oh why, weren’t we warned?
Fred, Dobby, Tonks, and Lupin
Moody, Hedwig, Snape, and Colin.
One by one, as the sun got higher,
We closed our books: full of all we desired.
We had laughed, we had cried
Now, happy and tired, we set the books aside.
Your books were our lives, for those rejected
They were the only thing with which we connected
Now it was over, what to do?
It was so hard to bid Harry adieu…
Jo, you’ve had your final word, now let us have ours:
There is only one thing to do, after washing the scars
We want to thank you, and Harry too
These words, they are so overdue
We grew up with Harry and his friends
Made the same mistakes, the same amends
Your books united fans throughout the world
We were so alike, our lives unfurled…
Neville and Luna taught us we all belong
No matter who we were, we were all strong
We found our true selves in the Sorting Hat
Nervous, on our own stools we sat
We smiled when you included us in the dedication
Your books were the cause of much celebration
So, Jo, thanks for everything you gave
For teaching us just how to be brave
Farewell, now, Jo, we wish you the best
As first generation readers, we are blessed
We will always love you and Harry
There will be nothing said to the contrary.
Know this, Jo:
You taught us everything we know.
Thank you forever,
For making us so clever
