When I was in elementary school, I played quidditch everyday at recess. My friends and I would rush out to the field and claim the monkey bars as goalposts, and fight to get the one available dodge-ball that would act as our quaffle. Ryan Smith would mold aluminum foil from his lunch into tiny golf-ball sized snitches and hide them. I was always a beater. I used my invisible club and leapt about batting away invisible bludgers from my teammates.

Therefore I can honestly say that when I heard I made the Slytherin quidditch team for Harriton’s quidditch tournament, a lifelong dream was being realized. And the fulfillment of this dream only got better when I went to practice and discovered: playing quidditch is the most fun I have had in a while.

I think the fact that our quidditch tournament was canceled midway through is a shame. I entirely understand the reasoning and agree that the game was getting too violent. Halting it was the right thing to do. But even in my battered and bruised state I find myself wishing for more. And I ask desperately: please give us a second chance.

The combination of Harry Potter Day and Quidditch Night at Harriton amounted to one of the most successful events I have seen in the history of Harriton. As a school we are notorious for our lack of spirit. But spirit was at a high for quidditch. As a member of the pep band I can confidently say that there were vastly more people in the stands for quidditch than there are for a typical football game. If we were to reinstate quidditch it could act as a gateway sport. Spirit for quidditch leads to spirit for football, for basketball, for anything.
Additionally, quidditch led to camaraderie formerly unparalleled at Harriton. The quidditch teams were comprised of varied demographics. Participants were three-season athletes, Science Olympians, HTC kids, upperclassmen, lowerclassmen, IB, AP, and anything in between.

It transcended any labels or divisions we might have. Inside Slytherin I got to bond with fantastic people I might not have any other contact with. Over the practices and the t-shirt decorating we became a team.

Outside Slytherin there was bonding as well. At the end of the tournament I went to Hopes Cookies to celebrate an incredible night. There I ran into members of all four teams, and fans as well. As a unit everyone rehashed the games and joked about calls and plays made. We as Harriton students reveled in the great thing our school had done.

I know to bring back quidditch, things would have to be changed. There would have to be more rules regulating tackling and checking. We would have to wear mouth guards, and padding, and turn in physicals. We would have to turn down the aggressiveness, and I would have to watch my mouth during games.

But I accept all of these conditions. Because I think quidditch is one of the greatest things Harriton has done in years. It brought together the Harriton community like nothing I have ever seen before, which is not something I think should be taken lightly. I know Quidditch could become a great tradition for Harriton.

And most of all, quidditch is fun. It is a wildly, exhilaratingly, thrillingly great time. I have become consumed with a love for the sport. My little sister yelled at me over lunch the day after the tournament because I wouldn’t stop talking about it. But imagine if she never gets to experience the thrill of running down the gym floor with a pool noodle between her legs in pursuit of a dodge-ball. I can’t imagine a more abject fate.