Getting High on Recovery

Today’s installment of the Harry Potter Week is a quote by none other than the Sorting Hat. If you are not familiar, the Sorting Hat is a magical hat that helps decide which group students will enter. Students live at Hogwarts during the school year and they are divided into four ‘houses’ (or groups). Each house has it’s own dormitory, history, and ethos.

One of the founders, Godric Gryffindor took his hat off and used magic to “put some brains” in it, which gave birth to the Sorting Hat. At the Sorting Ceremony, the hat is placed on the head of each new student. To decide which house they will enter, the hat looks into a student’s heart, their history and their hopes.

The four houses:

Gryffindor – values bravery, daring, nerve, and chivalry. Its emblematic animal is the lion and its colours are scarlet and gold. Gryffindor corresponds to the element of fire. You may be drawn to this house if you like adventure, if you are drawn to the unknown, and if you like mystery and risk.

Hufflepuff – values hard work, dedication, patience, loyalty, and fair play. Its emblematic animal is the badger, and Yellow and Black are its colours. Hufflepuff corresponds to the element of earth. You may find this your ‘home’ if you like the outdoors, working with others, and being creative with your hands.

Ravenclaw – values intelligence, knowledge, and wit. Its emblematic animal is the eagle, and its colours are blue and bronze. Ravenclaw corresponds to the element of air. You may be a Ravenclaw if you are a lover of books, knowledge, debate and humor.

Slytherin – values ambition, cunning and resourcefulness. Its emblematic animal is the serpent, and its colours are emerald green and silver. Slytherin corresponds roughly to the element of water. You may be drawn to Slytherin if you are goal oriented, driven and if you love the thrill of competition.

Imagine for a moment… if the Sorting Hat were placed onto your head, what would it find? As it looks into your heart, your history and your hopes, what do you think it would say?

If you are curious, you can take a quiz here that will sort you into which house you belong to. I did the test and I am Ravenclaw. My test also said that I have strong elements of Griffindor and Slytherin, which reminds me that personality can adapt, grow and change over time. (That is such a Ravenclaw thing to say!)

The Sorting Hat reminds you and I that each of us have our own strengths, experience and desires. We also have our biases and comfort zone. We can become stuck sometimes and perhaps this quote by the Sorting Hat will give you a nudge to do something out of the ordinary…

“Hmm. Difficult. Very difficult. Plenty of courage, I see. Not a bad mind either. There’s talent, oh my goodness, yes – and a nice thirst to prove yourself, now that’s interesting… So where shall I put you?” 

One thing we know about mental health and recovery is that we need to stretch ourselves, that is how we grow and change. A part of will feel anxiety and self-doubt, but we also have other parts that desire to feel alive.

Right now, take a moment to listen to your own Sorting Hat.

(If you are interested in learning more about the Hogwarts Houses or anything Potter, click here)

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For a related post, see “10 Great Things About Being a Geek Dad.” I invite you to sign up for my blog by clicking “Follow Getting High on Recovery.” When you enter your email, you will get free access to the blog. I do not send spam or share your email with anyone.

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Geek Therapy: Getting High with Geek Therapy

In the new year, I will be offering Geek Therapy using popular culture and superheroes. My specialties include addiction and mental health recovery, parent-teen relationships, emotions and communication skill-building, family counseling, trauma support and spirituality in counseling. If you would like to experiment with Geek Therapy and how it can benefit you, contact me at smswaby@icloud.com.

Keep it Real!

Photos: Bustle and FunnyJunk.