Twice. Last weekend, I had the opportunity to see Star Wars twice in the theater since my first excursion in 1977. Some of you weren’t even born in 1977. Not to set myself apart, but I was four years old at the time.

To be honest, I really don’t remember much of the movie back then.

I thought the “light sabers” were “life savers.”

I thought Darth Vader was “Dark Vader.”

I thought the Storm Troopers were robots.

In fourth grade, I became annoyed when two students in my class thought the Dark Side was cool and that Luke Skywalker was a wuss.

As the years progressed, however, I had all but forgotten the movie except for it being an important moment in time for many, or a reference people could toss about when cruising down the street in their “Land Speeders.”

I saw the movie again for the first time years later in a college dorm room.

As an introspective college student (as most college students are) I began to explore what my own capabilities are. I wondered if I would ever be able to say something like, “Stars Wars? I created that,” the way George Lucas can.

I began to wonder if I could ever have an idea so different and so important that it could change the world in its own unique way.

I wonder now if I can create something that will instill new dreams for someone else based on those ideas and creations.

Of course I can. You can, too.

Many of us have gone through life hearing that we can do anything we want to do, as long as we put our minds to it and work at it hard enough that it comes true. It may have come from a parent, a sibling or a good friend.

Of course, upon hearing this we probably thought, “yeah, whatever.”

The only thing is, later, we realize that the person who said those words was right — and we become frightened.

Or angry.

Or we even live up to the truth they set before us. Take a deep breath; it’s possible.

George Lucas has proved it, among others. Think of Steven Spielberg and Jim Henson.

Think of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Albert Einstein.

Think of who your hero is and how someday you could be a hero for someone else.

I understand that our own government found the Star Wars movies important enough to preserve them forever in the national archives.

What a vision George Lucas had!

Imagine playing a role in a movie that would immortalize your image with a small action figure.

Mark Hamill did just that, and I believe it was the biggest accomplishment in his career.

Sitting in the theater last Friday, I noticed a young girl of about five years old in front of me, watching the movie with her father. I spent a short time watching her reactions and remembering how I must have reacted when I first saw it.

I didn’t know what life had in store for me at the time — who I was, how I would grow up, what college I would attend or what career I would choose. In some ways, I still don’t know what life has in store for me in those respects. I guess that’s what makes it all so exciting.

Luke Skywalker was presented with such a moment as he looked off into the evening horizon while at home on Tatooine.

Perhaps that moment is a reflection of Lucas sometime earlier in his life.

Everyone has dreams, it’s just that Lucas had the initiative and the passion to make those dreams come true.

Whether you agree with Lucas’s vision or believe that his efforts are a waste is irrelevant.

Perhaps at times it is OK to live in a time when fantasy has a severe impact on reality. Isn’t that why we are here?

Do we exist because of work, school, eating or breathing? No.

We are alive to dream about everything we can become in this life and to strive until those dreams come true.

We have our strengths and our weaknesses. Making the most of those strengths and overcoming those weakness is the most rewarding thing a one can do for oneself.

Life will present itself in ways we cannot even imagine now. Sometimes we will not be able to control it and other times the world may cater to our ideals. It’s how we approach the situation that makes us strong individuals.

It’s time to take the advice of that friend.

It’s time to make a unique mark on the world.

What are you doing now to make sure your dreams eventually come true?

Do you think you can handle it when it happens?

Take the time to see what’s possible.

Take the initiative to make your dreams real.

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John Mullen is a senior in liberal studies from Waterloo. He is opinion editor of the Daily.