The Mirror of Erised. Credit: Flickr/Breezy Baldwin. Some rights reserved.
When Harry Potter discovers the Mirror of Erised in The Philosopher’s Stone—a mirror that shows us our deepest dreams—he repeatedly returns to it in secret. Each night in its reflection he lives his longed-for life: his parents are by his side, his relatives surround him, and all are smiling. When the wise headmaster Dumbledore discovers Harry’s nostalgic habit, however, he is dismayed. This is no harmless moment of fantasy. “It does not do to dwell on dreams Harry,” he warns, “and forget to live.”
