"You are going down a path I can't follow." Padmé, Revenge of the Sith

I don't know why, but this line of Padmé's has been stuck in my head for the past few days. It's like those nagging songs that play over and over and over inside one's brain for no apparent reason. They pop in, hang around for a while, and then pop back out. There's no rhyme or reason. Usually. (Actually, I hope writing this blog will help exercise this from my already too crowded brain!)

Anakin's and Padmé's wedding and marriage may have been kept a secret, but that didn't stop the young couple from facing life with a united front. Then, Anakin had to go and do something that Padmé just couldn't throw her arms around and accept. Here is where the two who had been strolling through life as one part ways.

Padmé represents the light; Anakin the dark. (Funny how most of my musings revolve around the classic light vs. dark struggle. Some of them don't wind up here in the blogs, but it is a subject with which I am fascinated.) Padmé, a true heroine, cannot - will not - follow down that dark path . . . even for love. She knows she cannot - should not - cross over the line, even in the name of love.

"What would Padmé do?" Obi-wan asks Anakin aboard the clone trooper transport in pursuit of the nefarious Count Dooku (AOTC). Reluctantly, with effort (the clash of his two wills apparent on his face), Anakin admits, "she would do her duty."

Padmé doesn't put limits on her love, but she does put limits on what she is willing to do for love. Evil is evil, even if it is carried out by the one person she loves above all others. There is no justification for evil. Not even love.

Then I got to thinking, what makes some women (I'm not bashing my sex) follow bad boys around while others refuse to cross over the line? This, then, ties into another one of my favorite themes - what kind of person do you want to be - strong, good, independent (like Padmé) or weak, (turned to) evil, dependent (like Anakin)?

(Yes, I know there is a lot more to each of their personalities and characters. I'm just concentrating on this aspect for the purpose of these musings.)

It can be one of the hardest experiences in life to turn away from the person you love most in the world. Anakin was willing to give in to his baser instincts to save Padmé. Padmé, on the other hand, knew the price to turn to evil would be much too high a price to pay. Her soul would be lost. She could not be swayed from her path dedicated to the good of all. (Okay, you might argue that she was unconscious, and might have been swayed by Anakin's pleas, but I don't think so. Think "what would Padmé do".)

I think about subjects like this, especially around the holidays. I like to examine the type of person I am now, how I compare to the person I was six months ago, a year ago. I like to take a hard, long look at myself with a critical eye (I'm not talking about my physical self. I know that needs a lot of work!), and determine what area(s) still need(s) work/improvement.

I also have a vivid imagination, and enjoy putting myself in fictional characters' situations. (I'm sure it isn't a stretch for you to believe that SW is my favorite setting I like to visit!) I know I would make the same decision Padmé made - I would stay my own course. I'm much too independent to abandon everything in which I believe for the sake of love. My heart would break, but I, too, would not choose to follow a path that was so contrary to my core beliefs.

Thank you so much for letting me ramble. It's just what I needed. I no longer have that line swimming around in my head. It has been exercised.

MTFBWY

JMW

p.s. On a completely different note, are any of you guitar players? Just curious.