I suppose I went through that same feeling of being deflated many years ago. Which is really funny now considering how little Lucas had weakened the story at that point.

I eventually made peace with it and, as Boost and Erik said, picked what was meaningful to me and said goodbye to the rest. Trust me, it's easier than you think and it makes the parts you still dig mean even more.

This is my personal canon;

http://originaltrilogy.com/forum/topic.cfm/Whats-your-Personal-Canon/post/529371/#TopicPost529371

Not much by Star Wars standards, but huge compared to one-film-only stories. I can't even begin to complain.