I grew up watching Star Wars—on the clunky TV at home, on Dad's laptop, in the campus library using giant LaserDiscs. We moved once, traded our stout little television set for a sleeker one, and continued watching Star Wars. In 2005, I had my first galactic experience in a cinema when watching Revenge of the Sith. I started watching the films way back in primary school; now at university, I'm friends with a group of people who love the galaxy just as much as I do.Star Wars has always been an important part of my life, and at the heart of it for me is Princess Leia. Bold, brave, and badass—she saved lives, fought for what she believed in, and sustained a calm wisdom throughout the rebellion. What would have happened to Luke and Han if she hadn't befriended the Ewoks? Where would Han have ended up if she didn't unfreeze him? I always felt a special connection with her (as a girl, as a twin) and know that this connection will live on.
Carrie Fisher herself brought the badassery she took to the big screen to real life. Her character fought to restore galaxy to the empire; Carrie fought to battle the stigmas against mental illness and addiction. She created hope in places of darkness. As she would have wanted us to say, she went in the most eccentric and poetic fashion—"drowned in moonlight, strangled by her own bra." Rest in Peace, Carrie Fisher—your legacy, both on-screen and off, will live on in galaxies near and far.
