Simply a magical moment

After the comments on my "hello monday" post I figured that quite a few of you were intrigued by the Harry Potter module I am taking. It is a module that is part of the education course at Durham and it really is all about Harry Potter and the key themes within the books. I think at some point it refers to education systems and illusion in childhood but mostly it is about immersing ourselves in the world of Potter!

If i'm honest it feels totally bizarre to be studying Harry Potter as part of my degree. On the other hand in a city like Durham it is easy to think you are walking around Hogwarts.

The first lecture is always the sorting so I thought I would use this as my "moment"- albeit a very unique one- this month. Hope that's ok Alexa!

Simply a moment:

We walk through town in our gowns and get some odd looks from the tourists. Gowns are worn to most formal dinners each week so students wearing them isn't too unusual a sight but I guess at three o clock on a Friday afternoon, we do look slightly strange.

My friend and I flap along to our destination. We are headed for one of the collages, University college, affectionately known as Castle owing to its placement- in the castle itself.

We are greeted at the door by a "prefect" who checks our campus cards and ticks our names off on a list.  We are in. We move through the gateway and into the courtyard. It is definitely one of the most impressive colleges. It really does feel like we are in Hogwarts now, especially with the red and white bunting still left from Freshers week.

We are moved into the Great Hall and we can already hear the music from the films being piped into the room. The atmosphere is amazing, there is a buzz of excited chatter, shrill giggles, wide grins.

We are seated on tables at the back of the hall. The lamps shine brightly and at the front of the hall is a table raised on a dais, a sorting hat, a stuffed owl and the gleaming house cup. The four house tables are in front of this, each covered in their respective colour. Blue for Ravenclaw, Yellow for Hufflepuff, Red for Gryffindor and Green for Slytherin.

I sit down at the back. How silly that I am feeling nervous. It's all just a game, just a piece of drama. But still, here in this hall it feels strangely real and important. Our lecturer makes the way to the front in his red gown. A hush falls over the hall as he welcomes us to our sorting.

The music has stopped, you could hear a penny drop. Another "prefect" comes forward holding the list of names. Slowly she reads the first name and the student walks in the silence up to our lecturer who places his hand in a velvet bag and pulls out a coloured marble. It's Blue and he calls the name of the house, "Ravenclaw" as we applaud.

I know that I am soon. It is in alphabetical order after all. This is so surreal and ridiculous in many ways but I am excited and nervous as I stand up when I hear my name. The walk to the front is long. There are many many eyes turned towards me. The hand reaches into the bag and pulls out a yellow marble. I'm a hufflepuff.
A sigh of relief and I fall into the chair at the hufflepuff table.

For a moment there, it was easy to believe that I was being sorted into the school of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Today I am joining in with Alexa's beautiful meme, "Simply a Moment." Do stop by her blog to read both Alexa's words and other bloggers as they record their moments.