I believe in vampires.


Despite the inevitable cat-calls of “Twilight freak!” this belief has caused me, I feel no shame. I proudly attended both the Twilight and New Moon midnight premieres and, surrounded by pre-teens in “Team Edward” shirts, realized that the movie struck upon something real. Not Edward Cullen – I find it hard to believe that anyone can reach that level of perfection, even given 107 years. No, the magic in the movie lay not in the romantic perfection that no human male can ever reach, but in the horribly hilarious special effects and the wondrous faces smiling at the screen.


The magic of vampires is not in their perfections, but in their flaws. The glorious daydreams of every stereotypical teenage girl after finishing the last page of Breaking Dawn only further my conviction that vampires, if only in essence, are real. Vampires embody the fight every human faces, the fight between their flawed nature and what is right, the fight between submission and strength. Edward is not loved because he is perfect; he is perfect because he is loved. After all, it was Bella’s presence that prevented him from chasing down the men who threatened her, and it is her love that saves him from himself. And if Bella can love Edward despite his murderous past, doesn’t that make us all equally glorious? Doesn’t that make every single one of us, by beating the odds and believing, magical?


This magic in each of us doesn’t stop at the limits of our thin skin; it expands outwards and inwards, billowing to the limits of our imagination. And though I’m sure more than one boyfriend will run away screaming when I reveal this deep, dark corner of my mind, I’m also sure that someday I will find the guy for me, not godly in his Edward-like perfection, but perfect in his flaws. And, like I have found in vampires, he will find my flaws- and my belief in vampires- to be just one more quality that makes me my own brand of magical.


After all, when it comes down to it, who am I to tell an entire species if they do or do not meet my qualifications for “real”?


This I believe: Vampires exist. But if you ever find me writing a “Dear John” letter because of my love for Edward, please pinch me.