ROTS SPOILER WARNING
This post references events in Revenge of the Sith - some speculation, some spoilers - BIG SPOILERS. If you do not want to be spoiled about ROTS, do not read this until you've seen the movie or read the novel.
How simple a thing it seems to me that to know ourselves as we are, we must know our mothers' names.
– Alice Walker
Naming
Today was my first Mother's Day. Well, not technically the first, but the first one I'd spent with Luke and Ben. There were two others, but they came and went unobserved during the war.
I might not have remembered the occasion at all if Ben hadn't tackled me in bed this morning with shouts of, "Happy Mudder's Day!" The proclamation was followed immediately by a bouquet of fragrant flowers shoved in my face, "Here! Dees for you."
His little face was so earnest, I couldn't help but laugh as I embraced him, "Thank you, sweetie!"
Luke appeared in the entry of our cabin on the Shadow balancing a tray covered with exotic desserts which he placed ceremoniously on my lap.
My mouth fell open, "What's all this?"
"Well," he smiled, "considering I've never celebrated a Mother's Day before, I asked around and did a little Holo Net research as to what was expected."
"But it's so…much."
He shrugged, "I just wanted to cover all the bases."
Before I could protest further, his lips captured mine in a warm kiss, lingering there longer than I expected considering that Ben was in the room. He pulled away gently and whispered, "Happy Mother's Day, love."
Leaning forward, I took his hands in mine, "Thank you, Luke." It felt like such a small, insignificant gesture. I doubt he will ever know how much his efforts meant to me.
His hands were trembling slightly and I clasped them tighter, sending him a burst of reassurance through the Force. As fate or the Force would have it, this Mother's Day was also the day that we visited his mother's home planet for the first time.
The past and present have finally merged as the galaxy attempts to return itself to a semblance of order. Long forgotten vaults of information are now cherished in systems that survived the purge of the Yuzhaan Vong. They are how societies are rebuilding…and how Luke was contacted by an archivist who found documentation of the marriage of Anakin Skywalker in clerical records on Naboo.
Leia had traveled to Naboo skeptically, but commed us the very next day, "The records are legitimate, Luke. And…she's here. Her memorial…is here."
I did not need to ask who "she" was as Luke swayed slightly on his feet. "Are you sure?" he asked.
"Yes. I remem-" Leia's voice caught in her throat. "I recognize her."
We were packed and on board the Shadow within the hour.
A flurry of investigation and brief meeting with the Minister of Monuments later, we stood in the Palace Plaza in front of the Triumphal Arch, gazing up at the monument that had been lovingly dedicated so many years ago.
Luke reached for Leia's hand and they approached the memorial dedicated to their mother while Han and I waited behind with the children.
They stood in silent reverence until Leia's shoulders hunched forward, shaking. Luke embraced her, resting his head on top of hers.
Beside me, Jaina brushed a tear from her cheek and Han wrapped a strong arm around her. Pulling her close, he kissed the top of her brunette head and placed a warm hand on Jacen's shoulder. The younger man had turned to his father for an uncharacteristic nod of reassurance as the ghosts of the past weighed heavy on our hearts.
When Luke finally motioned us forward with a nod of his head, we approached the monument and, one by one, stepped forward to pay our respects. Etched in a flowing script was the name: Padmé Naberrie Amidala.
Embedded in the marble of the monument were holo images and data files depicting the life and deeds of the former Queen, and later Senator of the Republic. Scrolling through the events of her short but remarkable life, the eulogy ended with a statement that struck me with unbearable sadness: that she was buried with her unborn child. The lie that had hidden her children from the Emperor, yet denied her family the knowledge that her immortality survived
Leia stepped forward with a section of marble wrapped in soft cloth that she had procured before our arrival. Together, she and Luke placed a new marker on the memorial. Their gift to her. A name.
Hours later, the others have retreated to a quiet corner of the memorial site. Jacen and Jaina chase Ben in green field while Luke and Leia talk quietly over Han, who is fast asleep in the sunshine.
I, like Luke, have no memory of my mother and I find myself alone in front of the memorial of the only woman who could bear such a title. Today, surrounded by the vibrant colors of this lovely world, it is difficult to image the holocaust, so many years ago, that brought us to this place.
I look at the memorial holos of the lovely dark-haired young woman…and I silently thank her.
For her courage. For the sleepless newborn nights she never had. For the sweet toothless smiles she never saw. For tight toddler embraces she never felt. For the weight of the world that she was strong enough to carry in her womb.
I run my fingers lightly over the new marker.
Padmé Naberrie Amidala Skywalker.
The name that she was not allowed to have in life. Yet another insult. Yet another travesty that we, as the new order, hope not to repeat.
There was a time when Jedi were taken from their mothers, raised worlds away to be guardians of the Republic. The Masters of old feared the danger of such parental attachments.
Yet, in the end, it was two adoptive mothers who served as guardians to the hope of the Jedi. They who have names but no memorials. Did they know the woman whose children they loved as their own? Did they realize the heritage that they held in their arms or know that their lives would one day be forfeit?
Sitting in the shadow of this monument, I am humbled by the legacy left us by Padmé and Breha and Beru. I'd like to think that they are watching. That they can see our beautiful family that exists because of them.
I'd like to think that the gentle Naboo breeze somehow carries the laughter of her grandchildren to Padmé. That she knows her son's love reclaimed her husband. That she can see that her name is once again hers…and that she is treasured in the Skywalker family.