“What’s wrong, my young traveler?” Gandalf the Grey asked the weary writer as he approached him slouched over a pile of papers in his study.

The old wizard took off his large grey hat and set it on the coat rack in Conner’s study. The room was Conner’s work area, where he spent his time organizing his thoughts and completing his daily academic and professional responsibilities.

“You wouldn’t understand, Gandalf. You’ve always known what your purpose was. I just can’t seem to figure out mine,” said Conner. “By the way, you’re late.”

“A wizard is never late, nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he means to,” Gandalf said [1].

“Whatever you say, Gandalf. I just hope you can help me. I’ve been having a lot of doubts lately.”

Conner had recently focused his efforts on a rather intimidating personal journey: writing. He wanted so badly to affect change, to challenge the thought processes of others, and to stimulate intellectual conversations with other people. He found that he could best do this through written word, though he did not anticipate the obstacles that he would come up against along his journey. Of those obstacles, self-efficacy was among the greatest.

“My dear boy, I would argue that you absolutely know your purpose,” Gandalf said. “You have always been an achiever, someone that always felt that they could contribute in some way to the causes you felt most passionately about.”

“But Gandalf, how do I know that I’m not wasting my time? What if people think I’m a fool for even trying? After all, I’m only one person. How can I alone make a difference?” Conner asked the old wizard.

“A very wise old elf was once asked that same question by a single traveler with many of the same doubts that you now have. She reassured him: ‘Even the smallest person can change the course of the future,’” Gandalf said [2].

Conner seemed to rise up a bit, as if the self-doubt that was holding him down had begun to lessen in weight.

“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us,” said Gandalf [3].

“Right, he is.”

The calm voice came from behind Conner as Jedi Master Yoda approached him. The small, green Jedi assisted himself with a cane when he walked, but he had the demeanor that he could pounce into action whenever necessary.

“Willing to take chances, you must be,” Yoda said. “Stray from your heart, you must not, if even your endeavors do not first succeed.”

“I guess I’ll just keep trying my best,” Conner said halfheartedly.

“Do, or do not. There is no try,” said Yoda [4].

“So I should just chase this ambition without any sort of caution? What if my writing isn’t good enough?” Conner asked.

A being appeared in the corner of the room with a loud crack; Albus Dumbledore had just apparated into their presence.

“It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities,” Dumbledore said [5]. “The very fact that you so desire to inspire good and denounce evil in the world tells a great deal about your character.”

Dumbledore had that special twinkle in his light blue eyes behind his half-moon spectacles that made him seem so comforting; ever since he was a child, Conner always found solace when in Dumbledore’s company.

“So you’re saying I can actually help people with my writing?” Conner asked as his face lit up.

“Of course you can,” Dumbledore said with a chuckle. “Words are, in my not-so humble-opinion, our most inexhaustible source of magic, capable of both inflicting injury and remedying it.” [6].

“I found it is the small, everyday deeds of ordinary folk that keep the darkness at bay. Small acts of kindness and love,” Gandalf added [7].

“Much power, your words have,” Yoda said. “Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter,” Yoda said as he pinched Conner’s shoulder [8].

Conner had always been good at many things, but never great at one. He struggled to find his path in life, always unaware of what he was meant to do. He was born with an athlete’s body and demeanor; he knew how to focus his physical and mental strength to accomplish his goals in a competitive manner, and he always thought that those inherent characteristics would define him and force him on a path he was not sure he wanted to take. But then Conner realized he had the power to make his own path, to embark on the journey that he desired, and become the person that he wanted to be.

He decided that he would use his writing to influence change and encourage good in the world, to condemn those that sought to spread hate and greed. And he discovered that the ending of the journey was realizing that it never really does end, that he will always continue to grow as a person and as a writer. The journey itself is the goal, for that is when he will discover new things about himself and the world around him.

“Is any of this actually real? Are all of you really here, or is it all just happening inside my head?” Conner asked as the three insightful beings began their departure.

“Well of course it’s happening inside your head, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” said Dumbledore [9].

References:

1. Quote from Gandalf the Grey in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
2. Quote from Galadriel in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
3. Quote from Gandalf the Grey in The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
4. Quote from Jedi Master Yoda in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
5. Quote from Albus Dumbledore in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
6. Quote from Albus Dumbledore in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
7. Quote from Gandalf the Grey in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
8. Quote from Jedi Master Yoda in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
9. Quote from Albus Dumbledore in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows