Harry Potter Questions his Career Choice

Maybe he should have been a teacher instead.
Less dangerous, perhaps, now that
he’d dealt with that Voldemort business.
Truth is, he’s getting little tired of the fighting,
getting a little tired of witnessing daily
what one person will do to another
given the chance.
Give him instead a quiet office
a pot of tea, a student or two with questions
about Grindylows
or ghosts
He knows about ghosts.
The ones you can’t see.
The ones that haunt him, mostly at night, mostly
when he can’t sleep, when there are no fights
to be had, no justice to be served,
and it’s only him, and all those ghosts
just out of sight.
Yes, he thinks, maybe being a teacher
wouldn’t be so bad at all.
While there are still ghosts that
haunt the halls of Hogwarts,
everyone can see them there.
Everyone knows their names.
Grace Carlson is a writer from Washington. She writes fiction, creative nonfiction, and the occasional poem. She also writes articles on travel, mental health, writing, and books. Sometimes she’s funny, or at least that’s what her mom says. Follow her on Instagram @gracieawriter.