Alone On An Island In Defeat

Alone on an island. Shut off from the universe and the force. He was determined to spend the remainder of his days in isolation. He had failed. The hope of the galaxy had rested with him, and he had only made it worse. He sought solitude to live out his days, but here she was, standing before him. Calling him back to a former life, a time when he had hope, but now that new hope was gone.

Luke Skywalker – the hope of the galaxy. He had been entrusted with passing on the Jedi's legacy, but somehow it had all gone wrong. In his effort to begin a new Jedi Order, he not only failed but managed to turn his prize student, his nephew, against him. Enraged, Ben slaughtered the remaining students and joined the First Order, a new Empire like regime, determined to conquer the universe once again.

Luke's failure could not have been more complete. Heart-broken and defeated, he isolated himself and no longer wanted any part of the galaxy or the Jedi. Bitter and frustrated, he began to view the Jedi in a much more cynical light and lost sight of what he had learned and believed. As she handed him the lightsaber, he wanted nothing to do with it.

Now, I realize that I am treading on thin ice with this post. The Last Jedi has undoubtedly created some strong feelings and opinions among fans. In the spirit of full disclosure, I liked the movie, well, most of it. I especially liked the story arch of Luke. Now, I know this particular aspect of the story is very troublesome for many fans, with many sharing that this would never be Luke's response.

While I understand their points, for me, on a much more personal level, I felt and understood where Luke was coming from. He had failed and lost everything, and had not fulfilled the hope others had in him, that he had in himself. Luke managed to create an individual who destroyed so much in the galaxy. All he had hoped for, all he had worked for was lost. How could this not be discouraging? How could a person not feel like a complete failure and want to give up?

Having struggled with so many things, especially physical health and some significant personal loss, I understand the heartbreak Luke must have been feeling. I understand how he would say, "I'm out. I'm done," and simply give up. When you walk through difficulties or disappointments or heartbreak, discouragement, depression, sadness, bitterness, and isolation can all be a result.

Luke was obviously feeling many of these things, and it pushed him to isolate himself and allow sadness and loss to turn to bitterness. It is something many of us would feel if we walked the same path. Now, in the face of this young lady, he was forced to face all of these things once again. After much discussion, argument, persuasion, and back and forth, Luke reluctantly agreed to give her 3 lessons. Yet, even in this teaching, you can see the bitterness and hurt.

After fighting and arguing, and Luke admitting his personal failure, she leaves. After Luke watches the Falcon fly away, he heads to the sacred tree, intending to destroy what's left of the Jedi religion. Little does Luke know the meeting that is about to take place. As he walks to the tree, ready to burn it down, he can't do it, so Yoda does it for him.

As Yoda laughs, one final lesson, he gives young Skywalker. As they talk, Luke finally lets it out. He shares his failure – the failure that drove him to isolation, bitterness, cynicism, and to give up on what he dreamed his future would be. Yoda gently reminds him that failure is part of learning and part of what we need to pass on to our younglings.

When presented with unmet expectations or failure, we choose how we respond. Often, that choice can lead us to anger, sadness, discouragement, and bitterness. It becomes something that colors everything in life, just as it had with Luke, and just as it can with each of us.

Just as Luke, we choose how we respond to failure, and it can either drive us forward or cause us to sink into bitterness and despair. Yoda reminds him, "Failure, the greatest teacher is." Even though Luke, out of his discouragement, does not feel he can do this, Yoda reminds him that his failure can help him, and Rey, if he will simply pass on what he has learned.

In isolation, Luke could not find his way out of this place. Locked in his mind and emotions, all he could see was failure. But with the help of others, Rey and Yoda, Luke saw once again what he had lost, and he had hope. This is something our children need to see, not only for themselves, but through us. Each of us have failures, unmet expectations, and hurt in our past. Just as Luke, we have a choice.

We can choose to press on and respond in hope, or we can let hurt, anger, bitterness, and discouragement rule our actions. Our children watch our reactions and how we choose to go forward. Will they see an example of hope or one of disillusionment? Helping our younglings work through these situations helps them learn and grow. It helps them learn that in spite of these challenges, we can still have hope. How we deal with failure is more important than how we deal with success.

That is the lesson Luke, and our children need to see, and by the end of the movie, he had. He gave everything to inspire hope and show that once again, there was something to believe in. Instead of giving up and isolating himself further, he showed that his failure and defeat would not define him. He was no longer going to choose discouragement and bitterness.

Our padawans need to learn that failure does not have to define us. Anger and bitterness do not have to color all we see. Discouragement does not need to cripple us. These things need to be the forces that drive us forward and encourage us to continue to do what we must. As Luke stood down those walkers, he showed that he was no longer going to be defined by his failure. No longer would bitterness rule his heart. In spite of failure, he was moving forward. That is the lesson each of our children need to see.