[HPforGrownups] Re: Wands

[djtarb at aol.com]

No: HPFGUIDX 31792

In a message dated Mon, 17 Dec 2001 10:18:14 AM Eastern Standard Time, "breegenie" <breegenie at yahoo.com> writes:

> 
> My theory is, people outgrow their wands. For example, Charlie 
> probably needed a new wand after Hogwarts because his interests 
> changed. The wand that is good for taming dragons is probably 
> different from the average wand a Hogwarts student would need. And so 
> Ron inherited his old "school" wand, since the Weasleys couldn't 
> afford a new one, and it was just a multi-purpose wand anyway.
> 
> I got this impression from Ollivander's comment about Lily's wand, 
> which he mentions was good for charm work. I'm assuming she didn't 
> know she wanted to be a charms expert when she first started at 
> Hogwarts, so perhaps this was a later wand, post-Hogwarts. James was 
> well-to-do, so they could both afford an upgrade. Maybe when you 
> graduate you get a new wand for your area of expertise?
> 
> Harry hasn't really hung out with anyone long enough to see the life 
> cycle of a wand. Perhaps JKR will elaborate on this as the Trio 
> ages...
> 

Ollivander's reference to "first wands" seems to bear this out, or something similar to it.  I wonder if most "first wands" are limited in some ways, as limited as most 11-year-old wizards and witches are, and they are replaced as their owners grow into their powers.  We know from the books that Harry is extraordinarily powerful (or at least mature in his power) so that he would perhaps merit a more mature wand...the counterpart to Voldemort's.  Not a beginner's wand, at all...

It reminds me of a guy I know who can pick up a musical instrument and within 20 minutes be playing it well.  Not just competently, but well.  He did that with my fiddle, and he'd never played a violin before...likewise the banjo.  He just has a talent/genius for it.

I think Harry's a lot like that.  I think he has enormous power for a wizard, regardless of his age, and will mature into its use and control as time progresses.

Diane in Philly
(who doesn't play the fiddle half as well as she'd like, and she has to WORK at it dammit!)