It wasn’t necessarily profound, but it made me laugh and it made her laugh and it kind of made sense. But now that I think about it, it really wasn’t even very funny, so I question if her laughter was genuine. I was kind of hungover too, though I tried to hide it, and my brain gets a little off-kilter the day after. Maybe that explains it. It came after a scene where Darth Vader “chases” after—big emphasis on the quotes around chases—Han, Leia, Chewie, C3, and R2. It was more of a saunter than a chase, and the gang of good guys managed to get away just moments before Vader caught up to them.[1] And so I said, If Darth Vader ever kicked it into a light jog, the Empire would win and Star Wars would be over after fifteen minutes. He’s always just moments away, and that’s because he wastes so much damn time sauntering everywhere he goes. And so now I think about the moment I said that and we laughed, and I think about this moment and how we haven’t spoken in forever, and I realize it’s all just a series of moments. This moment that moment this-that moment memento momentum move Vader move use momentum and move to the next moment.
[1] I thought it was funny how she kept calling him Lord Vader, not Darth Vader; she’s the only person I’ve ever known who does that. Is she an Empire sympathizer? Anyway, let’s get back on track. She never liked how I couldn’t sit too long in the serious moments before diluting them with sarcasm.
Riley Winchester’s writing has appeared or is forthcoming in Miracle Monocle, Sheepshead Review, Ellipsis Zine, Beyond Words, Pure Slush’s “Growing Up” Anthology, and other publications. He lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan.