THIS IS THE WAY: Yoda, being prepared and a prayer for Ukraine

Introducing THIS IS THE WAY, a new series from Beltway Banthas
focused on putting the virtues and lessons on living from Star
Wars into action. Today's episode is a reflection on
Preparedness, or being prepared. There are a lot of things in the
world you can worry about, lose sleep over or feel anxiety over,
but what you do with those feelings is a choice. News is a fine
example. Why do we watch the news? If it is merely to be
informed, well you're taking on an awful lot of weight for such
an unclear purpose. What you do with information, the actions you
take based on knowledge, that's a game changer in how you can
live. 


Remember why Yoda brushed off the idea of training Luke
Skywalker? "A Jedi must have the deepest commitment, the most
serious mind. This one a long time have I watched. All his life
has he looked away... to the future, to the horizon. Never his
mind on where he was. Hmm? What he was doing." From Yoda to Obi
Wan to Qui-Gon, there are numerous subtle moments in Star Wars
aimed at focus, attention, duty and preparedness. Perhaps from
IRL history, consider the words of Seneca..."Everyone faces up
more bravely to a thing for which he has long prepared himself,
sufferings, even, being withstood if they have been trained for
in advance. Those who are unprepared, on the other hand, are
panic-stricken by the most insignificant happenings."


As Russia wages an unjust and ugly war against its neighbor,
Ukraine, those of us on the sidelines have a choice to make with
how we interact with this fact. I would never ask you to jettison
empathy and care, but I would ask you to remember to care for
yourself so that you can best serve others. This podcast will lay
out why and how. 


THIS IS THE WAY is going to be appearing in the Beltway Banthas
feed regularly to fulfill this podcast's promise of weaving
together IRL politics and Star Wars. These reflections are
inspired by passages from my book, How The Force Can Fix
The World. 


You can follow me on Twitter @Stephen_Kent89 and
subscribe to the This Is The Way newsletter,
https://thisistheway.substack.com to read these reflections and
other stories on living from your favorite pop culture
tales.