The Best Wizarding Family Values

The holidays are upon us, which means it is time to snuggle up by the fire, bake some comfort foods that warm your belly, and most of all, spend quality time with family. This may be a great time to reflect on life lessons you would like to instill in your own family unit. There are a lot of great examples in the Potter series that could bring valuable life lessons. Below, we’ve listed seven magical lessons we can learn from some of the best witches and wizards in the series.

1. Compare your child to their peers.

Lucius Malfoy has the right idea when motivating his son, Draco. There is no better way to motivate your child than by telling them that their peers, especially those you view as lesser-than, are doing better in school than they are. By telling his son that a Muggle-born is performing better than him in school, he’s instilling a hard and valuable lesson: Your worth is always tied up in your grades. It’s best to learn this lesson at an early age before your child gets sloppy.

2. Invite the Dark Lord to stay at your house.

There is no such thing as “safe spaces,” particularly in the home. This is an important life lesson to toughen up your family and lead them to live more resilient lives. Lucius Malfoy knows that harboring an evil Dark wizard in his house is a genius way to set his family up for success. Plus, it is a great way to bring the family closer. While the Dark Lord and Death Eaters take over your home, you and your family will be forced to spend quality time together huddling inside the same room.

3. Erase them from the family tree.

Do you have a family member who is just a little bit odd or decides to have their own opinions and beliefs? If this happens, it’s time to cut them off completely. The Blacks had to do this with Sirius, and it was the right move. You don’t want anyone to think you tolerate any behavior that is different from your own. Remove any trace they ever existed. Burn their face off the family tree until their spot is just ashes. You don’t need that kind of negativity in your life.

4. Status is everything.

Status matters in the world. This is just a fact. The ones who know this early on will have an easier time knowing their place in the cogs of life. For those with lower status, you can shine and grow where you are planted. The ones with higher status can walk and go wherever they please, with no consequence. This may sound harsh, of course. But this isn’t without gratitude. Those who hold higher status should show their appreciation by continually bragging about it.

5. Put your career before your family.

This may seem counterintuitive. But a supportive family would notice your ambition and let you soar like an eagle. With family comes sacrifice. And sometimes you have to be willing to give a couple dozen punches or allow a bus to roll over a family member to get you where you need to go. Percy Weasley understands this. Sometimes you have to treat others poorly to raise yourself. And for family members who don’t allow this, they never really loved you at all.

6. Let young love take over.

Albus Dumbledore falling in love with Grindelwald eclipses everything else in his life. He forgets about his sister, his imprisoned father, and his sad and lonely mother and brother. But that’s love, right? Isn’t love the most powerful emotion? By loving another human being, you are teaching your family how to love by example. It still counts, even if it means you spend whole days, weeks, and even months without speaking to family. Actions speak louder than words, my friend.

7. Jealousy is the greatest compliment.

Jealousy is a powerful emotion. Petunia Evans is a prime example of this. When she couldn’t go to Hogwarts, she decided to be done with anything to do with the magical world, including her sister. At first glance, this may seem extreme, but jealousy is a wonderful gracious gift to the one on the receiving end. With jealousy, you are paying your family the biggest compliment: You want what they have, and that must mean what they have is amazing. This knowledge is a gift that the receiver can carry with them for the rest of their life. Experts say that being jealous of someone else is better for the receiver’s emotional well-being than love and connection. Jealousy shows that you truly care.

And with that, it’s time to put these lessons to practice. What do you think? Any other wonderful wizarding family values we can add to this list? Comment below.