Letting Go - A Lesson from Star Wars & Shadowlands

"Train yourself to let go of anything you fear to lose." - Yoda, Jedi Master (Star Wars, Episode 3)

Unfortunately, Anakin Skywalker didn't heed Yoda's advice and allowed his fear to lead him towards the Dark side of the Force. Eventually, not only did he not save his wife's life, he unwittingly became the cause of it and in the process, killed innocents and destroyed democracy.

In stark contrast, C.S. Lewis chose to let go of his beloved wife in the movie Shadowlands. Even though he still lost his wife to cancer, he retained his faith and went on to touch the lives of many with his book A Grief Observed.

Therefore, let us learn to let go of the things we fear to lose, lest we lose ourselves to the dark side of despair, misery, frustration and anger. True joy does not consist in possessing all our heart's desires for eternity but in treasuring, appreciating and reminiscing the beautiful moments that Life has given us.

Richard Attenborough, the Director of Shadowlands, put this into perspective in a apt way when he spoke about the movie: “It's funny, it's touching, very moving. It's tragic in a way but you end up feeling that life is really worth living, by virtue of the extraordinary relationship that they have together.”

Finally, let me share with you one of my favourite prayers (The Serenity Prayer) on letting go: God give me the serenity to accept things which cannot be changed; Give me courage to change things which must be changed; And the wisdom to distinguish one from the other.