What it do, baby? 

If you are reading this, then I am already dead. My life at Onward State has come to an end. It was a fun ride, but move on, I must. 

If you know me or have read my bio, then you probably know that I am a big Star Wars fan. I even did an in-depth breakdown of Abdul Carter’s Darth Vader tweet before the Orange Bowl.  

When I was a kid, I wanted to become a Jedi knight. My favorite show was Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and my favorite movie was Revenge of the Sith, even though the battle on Mustafar kind of scared me. I had action figures, Lego sets, video games, toy lightsabers, and pretty much anything else Star Wars.  

I even dressed up as Obi-Wan Kenobi for Halloween one time in elementary school. 

It’s too bad that I don’t have an midichlorians in my blood because I think I would make a kick ass Jedi. 

Anyways, that’s what I have decided to make my senior column about. Even though it’s impossible for me to become a Jedi, being a Jedi is more than just a green or blue lightsaber and using the Force. It’s a way of life. So, I’ll be taking some core principles of the Jedi code and explaining how I have applied them during my time at Penn State. 

Peace With Death 

I promise this isn’t meant to be dark. We use some funny lingo here at Onward State, and one of those terms is using “death” to describe somebody who leaves the blog (see the first graf above). This will be my final post for Onward State. Therefore, I am now dead.  

Jedi were mortal beings. They knew that all life forms would eventually die, and they saw death as a natural part of life. Therefore, the Jedi celebrated those who passed, rather than grieved, and saw the fear of death as attachment, the shadow of greed, because death is inevitable. 

I knew this day would soon come. The day I would be sitting down to write my senior column after nearly two incredible years with Onward State. I have mentally prepared myself for this moment since the start of the fall semester, so that I wouldn’t be sad when the day actually came. And it worked. 

Don’t get me wrong, I’ll miss the blog, but I feel like I gave it my all, and I have no regrets, so I have nothing to be sad about. I have tried to encourage those around me not to feel sad either, especially De E, who was getting all sappy around me at our last men’s volleyball media availability on Tuesday.  

Like how the Jedi had comfort in knowing that they would be transformed into the Cosmic Force upon dying, I now leave with the comfort that Onward State and Penn State have blessed me with unforgettable memories and have equipped me with skills that I’ll need in the next chapter of my life.  

Patience 

Patience is difficult because you can be too patient, but not being patient enough is a bad thing. So, if you’re too patient, you can miss out on opportunities, but there could be a negative result if you’re not patient enough, too. So, how do you define patience? 

Well, in Star Wars, there is no exact definition. Patience is a key part of being a Jedi, as it is preached by every master to their padawan to focus on the present and not fear, as fear can lead to the Dark Side. The reason for this is that force-sensitive creatures in Star Wars are tempted by the Dark Side, at least a little bit. It takes years of training to control this dark force, and without patience, you cannot control it. Therefore, you cannot become a Jedi.  

Patience is also rewarded in Star Wars. Like the training example, when a padawan displays patience and learns to become a master of their craft, they are rewarded with becoming a Jedi knight. Anakin Skywalker was rewarded for his patience and training when the Jedi Council gave him his first mission to confront Count Dooku in Attack of the Clones, but Anakin’s lack of patience also led to him losing his hand at the end of the movie.

When I transferred to University Park and joined Onward State in the fall of 2023, I wanted to do as much as I possibly could. After switching my major from marketing to broadcast journalism at the end of my freshman year at Penn State Altoona, I had very little journalism experience compared to my peers when I transferred.  

Other juniors have already landed an internship, or had a leadership position in a student organization, or had previously established relationships with professors and other staff members. I didn’t have any of that going into my junior year, and I felt like I was miles behind everyone else. And to be honest, I still kind of feel that way.

So, instead of trying to drink out of a fire hose my first semester at University Park, I decided to be patient, sit back, and learn from my peers with more experience. I watched how they approached assignments, how they wrote their stories, and I tried to read as much as possible. 

As a result, I barely did anything after I joined Onward State. I wrote 17 stories that semester and covered just three games. Other people in my contrib class (more OS lingo) were doing much more than I was, and I once again felt behind, except this time, it was freshmen surpassing me. But that patience was about to pay off. 

I was able to apply the things that I learned to the next semester, and I was better equipped to pick up more stories and consistently cover a beat. After covering Penn State men’s volleyball and writing triple the amount I did in the fall, I was rewarded with joining the football beat at the end of spring.  

Love & Attachment

The Jedi code forbids possessions and attachments, as attachment is the inability to accept change and death, natural processes of life. It is also seen as selfish to have attachments. However, Jedi were allowed to love and care, but had to do so without being possessive or getting attached. 

This is what I have struggled with the most in my senior year. After covering my first Penn State football game in West Virginia, I was immediately hooked. Although there was a two-hour rain delay during halftime, I still had the time of my life, and I loved every second of working that game.

I loved every game, practice availability, Zoom availability, and story I ever wrote covering that team. None of it ever felt like work. I immediately fell in love with the work and travel involved, and I never wanted to give it up.

This past year has truly been the best year of my life. I got to see new parts of this country with the new friends that I made. I visited eight new states, I had never even been on an airplane before this school year, and I did it all with people that I love.

I got to see how incredibly flat the Midwest is, how awesome Madison, Wisconsin, is, and I got to see Ryan Barker’s game-winning field goal against USC. I also got to cover the Big Ten Championship, two College Football Playoff games, talk to two future first-round picks, and try Culver’s for the first time.  

I did all of this in a span of five months, and contrary to what I mentioned about peace and death, about being prepared to leave Onward State and Penn State, I’m still not ready to lose football. Each trip was memorable and unique, and I will miss those road trips greatly. A big thank you to CJ, Nolan, Mikey, and Stutz for putting up with me all season long.

However, as part of my Jedi training, I must learn to move on and to continue on with my life.

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Well, that’s all I’ve got. I am so incredibly grateful for the opportunity to graduate from this great university and to write for the best blog in the whole wide world. I’m glad I got to cover this community, and I’m blessed to call this place home for two years. 

I can’t wait to see what Onward State will grow into in the future, and I hope that it provides more and more people with incredible, once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, as it did with me.  

Goodbye blog, and may the Force be with you. 

— Mitchell Reed Corcoran