Luna's Little Book of Wisdom {A Harry Potter Fanfiction}

An Early Memory

When I was seven years old my parents took me to see America. We went to Massachusetts to visit my Aunt Mairnale. My cousin, Deirgan had played for the Fitch-burg Finches for a while. The team was very good, and I remember the game well. Deirgan's team lost, and I was very disappointed because it had been so close and they had played such a good game. I was going over to say sorry to him that he lost, but he was busy with his team and captain.

I remember looking at them and studying each face; each expression. I found that none of the Fitch-burg Finch players were even remotely angry or sad about their loss. Instead, several of them looked relieved and even happy. I saw Deirgan high-five a friend and I was very confused, so I decided to approach.

"Sir Coach, why are none of you disappointed with the way the game turned out, please?" I asked in my high-pitched, 7-year-old voice. The coach turned to look at me. Deirgan turned to look at me. Pretty soon all eyes were on me and I felt very small and unimportant. Instead of yelling at me to get back to my parents, however, the coach stepped forward and knelt down beside me.

"In competitive games such as these, winning is not important. The most important thing is having fun and playing your best with a positive attitude. Without those two things you have already lost."

I understood what he was saying and I agreed with him fully and completely. We stood there, looking at each other with the same, curious stares and the same belief reflected in both of our eyes. It was then that Deirgan walked up to me and took my little hand in his.

"We know that we've played well when the adrenaline and fun of the game become more important than the competition," he told me. I agreed with him as well. "Because we've done our best, there's nothing more the coach can ask from us that we can give him."

I remember this event in my life because it was so powerful to me. Something inside me stirred, and the things my cousin and his coach said helped shape my own personal beliefs, dreams, hopes, and the things I now stand for. I still firmly believe in what they told me back then, even to this day. If they ever read this, I'd want them both to know how thankful I am for telling me things that meant something in my life, and still mean something in my life.

Thank you Deirgan, and Deirgan's coach. Thank you Aunt Mairnale, and Mummy and Daddy for taking me to America. I love you all.

Lesson # 2: In life, coming out on top as the best, most famous, prettiest, smartest, etc. is not the most important. The most important is doing your best with a positive attitude, and having an overall good time. It is hard to be satisfied if all you care about is the competition. If you've done your best there is nothing else you can do.