Left to my own devices

May 27th saw the debut of the Obi-Wan Kenobi series on Disney+. For the uninitiated, it is about the fallen Jedi master, and what he gets up to between the events of Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope . If that doesn't mean anything to you, then you probably won't get much from this blog post. If you're curious, however, keep reading. Just know that there are spoilers ahead. We're now five episodes into what has been presented to us as a six episodes limited series. The finale drops tomorrow, hence the timing this particular entry. I've very mixed feelings about the show, and  some strong opinions about it, as well as the overall direction of the Star Wars franchise in recent years. The end of Obi-Wan 's fifth episode left us on a fairly major cliffhanger, with several plot threads dangling. I have doubts as to how well they can wrap it all up, coupled with a theory as to whether or not Episode VI is truly the last one. Again, spoilers.

Yesterday was Fathers Day. Dad had already been on my mind, as 2022 marks twenty-five years since his death. We tend to apply greater significance to various (sometimes random) measures of time. I suppose that a quarter-of-a-century counts as such a marker. Lewis passed away from cancer in August of 1997. I last saw him that June. It wasn't supposed to be the final occasion our paths crossed in life, but sometimes that's how things work out. Dad had received his pancreatic cancer diagnosis in October of 1996. I learned of it that November, and began visiting with him regularly soon after. He lived in Springfield, but would travel -- with his wife and two-year-old son in tow - to Champaign and stay with my grandmother about every two weeks. That is where we would meet, talking about a variety of topics before the time ran out.