Hello from a day of early morning errands,
While it’s only Tuesday, it seems I have done enough stuff to manage an entire week. It is a beautiful day, not overly warm, but the sun is shining brightly, somewhat a rarity the past few months, but at least for a few days it might be a needed companion. I believe it was first apparent when I was in graduate school in Houghton, but I am quite sure I would fall into the category of Seasonal Affect Disorder (SAD). When I first found my way to the electric beach, as I call it, it was not about color as much as it was about a quick rejuvenation. Amazing what 15 minutes could do; the other time I felt this kind of hopefulness was when I was on the Harley.
While I cannot in any real manner claim to be a Star Wars aficionado, if you ponder the characters of Obi-Wan Kenobi and the polar opposite, Darth Vader, without working too hard, we have our the inner workings of our human struggle working toward the thing we wish, while simultaneously running from the thing we fear. This inner dialectic confounds us, and George Lucas used this struggle, offering us an opportunity to ponder our dilemma and becoming a billionaire in the process (his current worth is in the billions). The number of people who still eat, breathe, and sleep this galactic empire is now generational, and not surprisingly. Again while I have not watched all the movies, I too have been pulled in by the force, left to ruminate on what the two characters in my title offer us.
There are actually dissertations written about the battle that occurred in the empire, questioning everything from the basics of their battle to the philosophical principles and if they can actually manifest themselves as portrayed. In our fragile humanity, loss, injury, or misfortune can leave us disillusioned, hopeless, and bitter, and yet the character of Obi-Wan in his stoic mindfulness seems to choose the light regardless of whatever befalls him. There is a humility in him that is incomparable that, in spite of the unparalleled trust others place in him, he does not see himself as their leader, deferring regularly to the council. This is where one can see most clearly the battle between what is the living or the unifying force of the Star Wars World. While this particular focus would be enough for this post, allow me the freedom to look at “the dark side.” Darth Vader, whose every aspect creates the ultimate antithesis, is the epitome of Friedrich Nietzsche’s will to power. Power for us is intoxicating. Consider our current world for a moment. Emotion and passion are essential elements of our humanity, and Darth Vader believes deeply in expressing those emotions; however, the emotions focused upon are anger, pain, and hate. All three are not wrong, nor should they be repressed, but likewise the unbridled expression of them results in profound damage. Vader’s nihilistic, existential authoritarianism is justified by his deterministic foundation. And yet, even Darth Vader is willing to give himself to sacrificial love in the end. Schopenhauer’s metaphysics of unity, the need of our love to encompass the other wins out.
So then what are we to say to this? For years, I have found myself mystified by the concept of “the other.” My first experience, at least my awareness of such a possibility, was when I met a foreign exchange student from Germany. Her in was Monika (and I do think it was with a K) and she was from a small town outside Köln, mit Namen Bergisch-Gladbach. She was the first European my age I had ever met. I would actually go to her parent’s house some years later during my first trip to Germany. Both of her parents were musicians and taught at the university. When I was in college and seminary, I was drawn to exchange students because I was both fascinated and humbled by their intelligence, their ability to think and analyze more critically, and by their more sophisticated world view. I remember playing chess in seminary with a German student. He annihilated me weekly, and when I stalemated him once, you’d think I’d won the world chess championship. It was quite pitiful. In the years since, my travels and time in the academy afforded me the opportunity to meet a number of amazing people from throughout Europe to Central America, from the Caribbean to South America. Hosting exchange students continued to broaden my understanding and appreciation for this world in ways I couldn’t have imagined.
Perhaps the most significant consequence that embracing the concept of and being open to the other is I finally began to understand myself. We are complex; we want order and yet too often run toward chaos. I have to people I admire deeply, but they seem to thrive on chaos. It stresses me out, and it’s not my chaos. And yet opportunities are often accompanied by chance, and chance invites chaos. Is it possible to live with dignity and courage while simultaneously caring for the other? To see love as something we do not possess or need to, but rather as something to give? I think we have too often been conditioned to believe that love, relationships, or situations are something to control rather than allow. Perhaps our dark side is plain and simple selfishness. The reality of our human struggle is how we might find it possible to focus on what we have to offer rather than what we believe we are owed. Lately, I have specifically stated how fortunate I have been to live the life I have. Again, I have specifically verbalized that no one owes me anything. And yet there is always the balance in my own dialectic. How can I work more diligently to be selfless? How can I treat the other with the appropriate level of respect, even when I do not always understand the other? What happens when my heart wants to be Obi-Wan, but my actions appear to be more Vaderish (is that a word)? Perhaps it is in my awareness, I can remain in the light. I’ve shared this video before, but it seems apropos here.
May the Force Be with You, and thank you for reading.
Michael
thewritingprofessor55 