Why Steven Universe “Mindful Education” Broke Me

Hey friends! For those who don’t know me, I am Darth Mexican and I am the owner of The Geek Lyfe. While owning an indie geek website is fun, it’s still pretty taxing especially when you add in the fact that I work 40 hours a week, have to maintain my friendships, ensure my family knows I love them, and some how convince a woman I am worth dating.

Most days I can handle the weight of the world and walk with pride with a genuine grin but there are some times where the weight does get to me. I try to move forward but it seems when one thing cracks, the rest does as well and it can be overwhelming when everyone comes to you wanting something from you but you can only give so much of yourself. The idea of even trying to spread yourself so thin and work so hard then to be rejected or unappreciated hurts, it really does. I was recently in one of these funks and I was so stressed out that I became numb to it all and just started wandering through life like a zombie because I felt as though I was unable to do anything correct.

One of my guilty pleasures is Steven Universe. If you are unfamiliar with the show, it’s about a boy who is destined for greatness and turn the tide against a coming war from extra terrestrials but he is such a carefree and fun loving guy that the lessons of war are hard to grasp for him. Their episodes are almost always light hearted and fun, often filled with songs to add to the charm of it all and it just makes all of the bad stuff going on in my life melt away, even if just for 11 minutes.

Recently an episode aired called ‘Mindful Education’ that focused on both Steven and, his friend, Connie dealing with their inner demons. When they tried to ignore them, they showed that it can be much more damaging than actually acknowledging and dealing with what happened. This episode spoke volumes to me because it was exactly what was happening to me, I realized that instead of dealing with my problems I just tried to grin and bare them without ever admitting how much it hurt.

Their main message can be found in this song, ‘Here Comes A Thought’:

As the song began they explained how bad thoughts come and can confuse you but you need to take a moment and find yourself. Once you deal with what happened you can then move forward with healing. It hit me so hard that I didn’t even notice that a few tears rolled down my cheek. My heart raced, my throat went dry, my hands shook, and I just could not function. I should also add that I was watching this episode at the office where co workers frequently walk down the hall and peek into my office. I just did not care at that moment, I was a 26 year old bearded man who lifts weights and loves boxing and I just cried at an episode of Steven Universe. After the episode ended I just sat there at my desk contemplating my life and the problems I had.

It was exactly what I needed because after that day, the world and it’s problem didn’t seem nearly as daunting to me. I think everyone can benefit from checking out this song, we all have our issues, none are more important than others since we still feel the damage from them. It’s okay to acknowledge that we’re not perfect human beings. We are flawed in so many ways that tripping and breaking is naturally, it’s why we have emotions in the first place so we can cry at the bad times and then laugh at the good times. When we try and hold back on letting ourselves feel what we need to feel, it’s when we crack and are unable to move forward because we’re still shackled by our past.

I apologize if this seems like rambling but I felt like I needed to write this in hopes it helps someone else going through a rough time! Be sure to check out Steven Universe, it’s a wonderful show!