Mindful Education

"You have to be honest about how bad it feels so you can move on."

"Mindful Education" is the 4th episode of the fourth season of Steven Universe and the 107th episode overall.

Synopsis
Steven and Connie learn to focus better.

Plot
Connie walks to the Beach House and knocks on the door. She is greeted by Steven, who is apparently bald. Steven attempts to get Connie's attention because of this baldness but fails because Connie appears unenthusiastic. After a small stress attack, Steven gets to the point and blurts out he is bald. Connie wonders how that had happened, but Steven reveals it was just a joke. Steven begins to express concern with Connie's unenthusiastic attitude on this day, but Pearl and Garnet warp in to break it up.

Pearl asks Steven and Connie if they are ready for today's "special lesson", which is revealed to be Fusion training. Garnet is joining in since she is very excited to see Steven and Connie fight as Stevonnie, even making a "fusion sign" with two sides (one for Steven and Connie and one for Stevonnie) to cheer them on.

The group moves to the Ancient Sky Arena where they will begin Fusion training. The Holo-Pearls fuse into a larger version of themselves, and Steven and Connie fuse into Stevonnie and begin the battle. It starts with basic sword-fighting until Stevonnie floats to a pillar behind Holo-Pearl, which impresses Garnet and Pearl. Stevonnie wall-jumps straight at the giant Holo-Pearl until reality distorts to turn Holo-Pearl into an unknown human child. This startles Stevonnie, making her lose focus and unfuse. Connie runs away with an anxiety attack afterward.

Steven checks up on Connie and asks what's wrong. Connie says she had done something horrible at school, which is revealed to be attacking that child Stevonnie hallucinated. Connie doesn't know how to handle the situation since the attack was based on her instincts from training. Steven tells Connie that she didn't mean to hurt him, so it is best not to think about it and let herself down from an accident.

Garnet comes on the scene and takes Steven and Connie to the beach. Garnet begins to teach them about keeping the balance with a Fusion to prevent them from unfusing again. One particular aspect Garnet teaches is coming to an understanding about one's feelings and keeping a clear mind when fused. Garnet asks Steven and Connie to fuse so they can begin by meditating and entering their realm in the mind.

The song Here Comes a Thought begins to play as the cinematic starts with Garnet as the lead. Ruby and Sapphire encounter a butterfly. It disturbs Sapphire and makes Ruby furious enough to chase it down. This leads to more butterflies surrounding Sapphire. Stevonnie encounters a butterfly on their finger until it flies off with a swarm flying in from behind Stevonnie. The swarm surrounds Sapphire, overwhelming her as Ruby is overwhelmed by the one butterfly he was chasing. Garnet, however, assures that this is not how the two fall apart. Ruby takes deep breaths and runs over to Sapphire to comfort her, and succeeds in doing so.

Stevonnie takes the lead and experiences Steven and Connie facing the same issues with the butterflies but ultimately calms down as well. Steven, Connie, Ruby, and Sapphire lay down and watch the butterflies flutter, and Stevonnie and Garnet complete their meditation. On the next day at the Beach House, Connie is much more enthusiastic than before after talking to Garnet. She even resolved conflicts with the kid she attacked, who is revealed to be Jeff. Connie is also much more enthusiastic because she was able to clear her mind by resolving this conflict with Jeff instead of doing nothing about it, which only made it worse for her. Steven sees a butterfly on the handle of Rose's Scabbard, which worries him from possible foresight.

Training begins, and Stevonnie is doing much better with more confident maneuvers against multiple Holo-Pearls. When Stevonnie thrusts into one Holo-Pearl, however, the hallucinations begin again, and this time, it is on Steven's part as Stevonnie witnesses Bismuth getting poofed. Garnet snaps them back to reality with Pearl expressing concern, but Stevonnie snaps back into the hallucination and witnesses Jasper and her corruption. They also witness Ruby (Eyeball)'s hatred and anger toward them, and Stevonnie is eventually surrounded by the three, overwhelming them with guilt and sorrow. The three poof into three swarms of butterflies and form Rose Quartz in the sky, looking down on them with a disappointed look. This makes Stevonnie walk backward and inadvertently fall off the edge of the Ancient Sky Arena.

Stevonnie unfuses from the sudden shock, and Connie encourages Steven to fuse again to hover down safely. Steven is under turmoil, though, as what he witnessed was one of the worst things he had experienced coming back to haunt him. Connie tells him it is okay to think about it, and Steven has to feel bad about what he had done so he can move on as he had no other choice but to act upon Bismuth, Jasper, and Ruby (Eyeball)'s demise since the three refused to accept Steven's help. They begin to fuse once more, and Stevonnie begins to breathe to calm down. They eventually land on the ground safely, happy about the outcome. They lay on the ground and stare at the clouds to end the day.

Characters

 * Steven
 * Connie
 * Stevonnie
 * Garnet
 * Pearl
 * Holo-Pearl
 * Ruby (imagined)
 * Sapphire (imagined)
 * Bismuth (imagined, mentioned)
 * Jasper (imagined, mentioned)
 * Ruby (Eyeball) (imagined)
 * Rose Quartz (imagined)
 * Jeff (pictured, mentioned)
 * Greg (mentioned)

Objects

 * Rose's Sword
 * Rose's Scabbard
 * Pearl's Swords
 * Warp Pad
 * Connie's Phone

Locations

 * Beach City
 * Beach House
 * Ancient Sky Arena
 * Connie's School (imagined, mentioned)

Songs

 * "Here Comes a Thought"

Instrumental Songs

 * Rose's Theme

Trivia

 * This is the first episode Connie's school's interior was shown.
 * This episode revealed that a Holo-Pearl could fuse with another Holo-Pearl to form a larger Holo-Pearl, much like how the Rubys can fuse into a larger Ruby.
 * White butterflies are a heavy piece of symbolism in the episode. In many cultures, the butterfly represents the soul, with the color white representing the soul's purity. It also has many associations with good luck and moving on the right path of life.
 * This could also be a reference to the expression "butterflies in the stomach", which relates to anxiety.
 * The butterflies are also very similar to the ones that "attacked" Steven in "Serious Steven".
 * The episode features some sequences made by Japanese animator Takafumi Hori.
 * This is the first episode to be animated by a guest animator.
 * "Here Comes a Thought" is the first song sung by Stevonnie, the first duet by Garnet, and the first song of Season 4.
 * Stevonnie is shown to be ambidextrous in this episode as they have used the sword and shield interchangeably.
 * This episode ends without an iris close.

Cultural References

 * Stevonnie kicking their legs to hover in the air is a possible reference to both Yoshi and Luigi's scuttle jump from Super Mario Bros..
 * Connie and Steven holding their hands together as they fell is a possible reference to the 2001 Japanese anime fantasy film Spirited Away.
 * Garnet's method of mindfulness meditation, especially the lines "it's just a thought, we can watch them go by", closely mirrors the principles and strategies of Mindfulness Cognitive Behavior Therapy (MCBT) or Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), practiced by accepting the presence of negative feelings without dwelling on those thoughts. Both therapies have been shown to have a high success rate in treating anxiety, depression, and PTSD.
 * Steven's bald appearance during the opening joke might be a reference to Steven Hayes, Ph.D., known for his work related to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).
 * The hand symbol made by Stevonnie and Garnet during the song is the Mudra for the Vishuddha Chakra or Throat Chakra. This fifth blue Chakra is the Chakra of truth/communication, being blocked by lies/confusion.
 * The scenes of Stevonnie facing Steven's shameful thoughts are filtered through yellow, presumably symbolizing Steven's Solar Plexus Chakra, the third yellow Chakra of willpower and taking action currently blocked by shame. Avatar: The Last Airbender did the same thing with that particular Chakra and all the others.

Continuity

 * Steven and Connie are still training with Pearl since "Sworn to the Sword".
 * Steven confronts his demons from the episodes "Bismuth", "Earthlings", and "Bubbled".
 * The "Ancient Sky Arena" shows damage from the events of "Steven vs. Amethyst".
 * Garnet uses Steven's line, "Hold the phone. Now give the phone to me", from "The Message".
 * The odd visions Stevonnie sees when under stress in "Alone Together" and "Beach City Drift" are revealed to be a normal side effect when a fusion is in disharmony.
 * Steven uses the line "Fusion joke" from "Cry for Help".

Errors

 * When Stevonnie sees Holo-Pearl as Jeff and fails to attack, both Pearl and Garnet are shown with a shocked expression. However, the sign is "GO Steven + Connie" even though they were still fused as Stevonnie.
 * In multiple shots, Ruby's gem is missing.
 * As Ruby yells about the butterfly during "Here Comes a Thought", her gemstone is not colored in.
 * In multiple shots, Sapphire's plump lips are missing.
 * At the beginning of "Here Comes a Thought", Stevonnie's gemstone has six facets instead of five.
 * When Garnet is holding the butterflies in her hands, the front of her left shoe is uncolored.
 * When Steven and Connie are falling, Connie's ribbon changes from red to blue in a frame.

Videos
Mindful Education Mindful Education Mindful Education pt-br: Mindful Education Mindful Education