Come with me to a Galaxy far far away…
Its difficult to articulate how much the Star Wars universe means to me. As long as I can remember, growing up was extremely difficult for me. I often felt very alone and isolated and change was hard to me to grasp. But as soon as I could make sense of words on the page — I was immediately enraptured. I couldn’t get enough of the written word. I quickly advanced far past my reading level at around age 10.
For a full scope, I was a problematic child, imagative and wild. The rules of society didn’t make any sense to me. Girls were supposed to be polite and docile, I had no interest in that. I said whatever popped into my head. I had no shame, and I wanted to run and scream and make mud pies.
I was a raging tomboy. I wanted to keep up with the boys just so I could prove that even though they underestimated me — I could bloody well fucking beat them. I liked things that were determined to be “for boys only”. Like lightsabers and choose your own adventure books, and especially science fiction, I wasn’t remotely interested in makeup or crafts.
When my friends introduced to me Star Wars I had no idea how much my world was about to expand and change. I fell into this incredible galaxy of Jedi and starships and I never wanted to leave. I quickly discovered the amazing book series by Jude Watson who is my hero (!!!) and still is to this day. I flew through the Jedi Apprentice and Jedi Quest series so fast — I couldn’t get enough. I’m not sure what grabbed my attention or what attracted me to this universe. But it felt like I had arrived, like the weight of your actions in this universe meant something.
Luke and Leia were fighting for something. They believed in something so much that they fought to keep it. Women had a place at the helm of history, there were no bars based on your species or gender, you were an equal. All kinds of humanoids sat on the Jedi Council. You had a seat at the table. The Jedi stood for upholding peace in the galaxy and their moral courage cahnged the course of my worlds. They were responsible for the most courageous and compassionate things I have ever read on the page. I wanted to be like them. Of course I wanted a lightsaber and a blaster, but the cause was what gave me life and hope and gave me a sense of belonging. I wanted to belong just as all the padawans belonged to the Temple. Casting off attachment and devoting their lives to a greater cause. Having that sense of purpose was all I ever wanted.
To me, Jedi uphold the highest example of compassion and bravery. They are who kids should be looking up to — not Barbie or some stupid Princess whose only job is to look pretty and snag a Prince. There are much more important things in life. We need children to look up to those with a higher purpose. Not superficial girls with a lot of money to throw around. Who is going to stand up against injustice if not the next generation?
Star Wars means a hell of a lot more to me than just a another fandom. It means rebellion. It means hope. It means fighting back against those who wish to trample our rights. It means rights for women. It means reprenstation for minorities and the will to fight. It means standing up against fascist regimes. It means no matter who your Father is, you can still be someone better, someone entirely different. You can start over no matter how much you loose or how many mistakes you make — you can still be redeemed and begin again. Star Wars is about being loyal to your friends even though you know it will cost you a great deal. Star Wars means standing up against injustice and evils of the world. Star Wars is about building a better world and continuing to fight for good — even if your own son turns to the dark side. Star Wars is about being a badass bitch force user like Leia in the OG canon books (not like in the new movies were they completely nerf her character).
I hope after reading this you can see it for something a lot more than just another ficitonal world. To me Star Wars could be our future, it represents the now, and something to strive towards — and gives us so many lessons that we can apply to our own life. ❤ MTFBWY ❤ Sending lots of love to you and your galaxy.
