We’ve all lost heroes this year. People we’ve cared about. People we admired. People we loved. Family members, friends, celebrities. One such hero was Carrie Fisher.

Princess Leia was one of the first film icons I ever encountered. I can’t remember the first time I watched Star Wars; all I know is that I’ve idolized Carrie Fisher’s breakout character for about as long as I can remember. Even when objectified, put to the side, or even tortured, Leia exuded strength, empowerment, and wit. Jabba the Hut made her into a silent sexual playtoy, and she strangled him with the very chains of her bondage. Leia? Leia was amazing.

It wasn’t until recently, however, that I began to understand and admire the actress behind the character. Carrie Fisher was outspoken, brilliant, a feminist, and an advocate for those who struggle as she struggled herself. She faced great difficulties, including bipolar disorder, drug addiction, and the constant criticisms faced by women in the movie industry. The drugs, she said, helped her “dial down” the symptoms of her bipolar disorder. The thing I admire most about her activism, though, is that it wasn’t always the angry activism so often seen today. Carrie Fisher was an honest advocate, and she was an advocate with humor. She managed to both candidly explain her most difficult experiences and crack jokes and make light of things without removing their importance. And she was fearless. In an interview with ABC news, Fisher said, “I am mentally ill. I can say that. I am not ashamed of that. I survived that. I am still surviving it, but bring it on.” She went on to say to those with mental illness, later, that “you can lead a normal life, whatever that is.” As someone closely familiar with mental illness, her complete ownership of her fight with bipolar disorder and her bravery in continuing the fight meant so much to me personally, and I know she inspired countless people trying to survive as she did.

The world has only really recognized her incredible skill with the written word in the wake of her passing. Her editing prowess saved countless scripts, including “Sister Act” and “The River Wild.” She had the ability to develop and deepen female characters and liven up dialogue with her fantastic sharp humor. Her books, including novels, non-fiction works, and scripts for the screen and stage, carry the same humor mixed with semi-autobiographical depictions of drug abuse and mental illness. Carrie Fisher managed to take the tangle of the human dilemma and unravel it with her pen.

Nothing I can write is worthy

enough of this amazing woman. Carrie Fisher transcends words, perhaps because she so brilliantly spun them. She’s so much more than a sci-fi princess. She was a survivor, a creator, a feminist, an addict, an activist, an artist, an advocate, and beyond. She was my hero, and the hero of so many other people. From the bottom of my heart, Carrie, thank you. I never knew you, never met you, but you re-angled the trajectory of my life. I don’t give a shit about Luke; you were my new hope when I needed hope, my savior when I felt alone, my hero when I was desperate to one. My thanks can never be enough for what you’ve given me, and what you’ve given the world. You’ll be missed.