Wake up at 7. Leave by 8. Work begins
at 9:45.
Work for 9 hours. Leave by 7. Arrive
home by 8.
Wash up. Eat up. Sleep. Repeat.
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| Cozy new slippers I bought. Mickey Mouse shoes! |
Such is my life for the past month or
so and it shall continue this way for a while. I have experienced
many ups and downs since coming to this new world of magic, torment,
trials and happiness. I love being a part of the magic, but hate the
torment it brings me. I love the happiness I feel, but hate the
trials I am put through to test my ability, knowledge and commitment.
I am used to being away from my family because I am a college
student. I am not used to the hours my body must work despite my mind
telling me otherwise. That being said, let's wake up at 7...
The mornings bring a new day and new
adventure. I am always excited to take on the day's work and bring
magic to new people. Whether it be via the Disney difference or
through everyday interactions with my roommates and friends. Magic
happens all around us though I do not think we are prone to notice
it. Perhaps it is because I am a Christian that I try to see the
good, better, and best in everything I do and in every person I meet.
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| This little card made my day! |
Sometimes it's not so hard to see, for
example: Disney Pin Trading has become a big deal for quite a few of
our guests. Seeing how about 60% of our guests are return visitors, I
can understand that trading the pins bought from one's last visit
with cast members allows them to keep the memories alive in a more
tangible, souvenir-ish way. I trade with more adults than I do with
children! Not too long ago, I traded some pins with a small child,
probably no more than 10 years of age. He presented me with a “thank
you” card for trading with him, which was probably made by his
parents. It had a website on it which lead to more praises and thanks
to all the cast members who help bring the memories to life each and
every time they look at their Disney Pins. I never thought of the pin
trading in such high regard, but that family must have been trading
for quite a while if they loved it that much. That little thank you
card made me realize just how much people love the little things that
Disney cast members do for them. It also got me thinking about how
much we take the little things for granted. I know that sounds very
cliché, but I believe its true now more than ever. That simple text
from a parent wanting to know how your day is going; the random
compliment from a fellow co-worker; the little thank you card from a
child; all of these things can, and usually are, easily overlooked in
the grime of the day.
Sadly, there are more times in which
the little happy things God sends us are overlooked and downplayed,
for example: One day I was out with Goofy and we had a family in line
waiting their turn. The parents were excited, the kids (one about
13-14, the other about 5-6) were excited and everyone was getting
along. I never know anything about the guests who are here, only that
they want to have a fun, magical time. Being that I am here for the
experience, I want to give it to them. As much fun as the family
seemed to be having, once it was there turn, the 5-6 year old starts
to scream and cry. Goofy is REALLY tall and can be a bit intimidating
to some children, understandably. It seemed that almost instantly,
the parents were code red MAD. They were yelling, the child was
crying, Goofy is hiding in the corner, it was pure chaos in a 10
square foot area! Thankfully, the other child seemed to have some
since of how to get his sibling to not be afraid, or at least stop
crying. He scooped up the little one and went to the exit, where I
heard him say “Just look at Goofy from here. I think he's more
afraid of you than you are of him!” and he was pointing to where
Goofy was crouched in his corner looking at them. They didn't get a
family picture, but at least the child didn't seem scared anymore.
All I could think about was how quickly the parents were to yell
instead of console. My guess would be that this wasn't the first time
that took place. Perhaps they had seen another character earlier in
the day and the same reaction took place: Excitement turned to
Terrified. Perhaps this same event took place with everyone they had
seen and the parents were simply fed up with it. I do not know. I saw
the kindness and love in the older brother and that made the moment.
Maybe the parents were tired and exhausted, maybe they were just not
as patient because they have an older child. All in all, I'd rather
look at the good in the situation rather than simply brand the
parents as “bad parents”. I know not of their situation but I do
know the outcome of that little event. A well of sympathy and
compassion always overcomes me when smaller children are afraid of
something, let alone something so friendly as Goofy.
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| I want to play this so bad! I need a 3DS! |
Other than being a part of the magic
that everyone sees as a guest in Walt Disney World, seeing the
massive amount of families everyday does pluck at some tender heart
strings. I miss my family. Yes, I am a college student and yes I am
used to being away for long times. However, I missed my mother's
birthday, I missed my parents anniversary, I am going to miss
Thanksgiving with them, I am going to miss my birthday with them, I
am going to miss Christmas with them and I am going to miss New Years
with them. Not to mention the smaller celebrations that I cannot
spend with them that I would be able to spend with them if I were
normally at home. My brother and I are such gamer geeks that when a
new game comes out that we really like or waited a long time for, its
like a small celebration for us. Kingdom Hearts 3D [Dream Drop
Distance] came out and I'm not at home to talk about it with my
brother. Phone conversations with that boy are just NOT the same!
Epic Mickey 2 is going to come out soon and as awesome as it is that
I am at Disney World when it does come out, it won't be the same as
being at home with my geeky gamer brother. Whenever new awesome
movies come out, I cannot see them with my family. I either go alone
or with the new friends I have made while being here (or with good
ole' Andy). I haven't seen any summer blockbusters with my family
this year at all. A few days ago, I was thinking about why I keep
buying so many gifts to send home and I realize it's because I miss
them all so much. I want my family to know that I am always thinking
of them so I want to send them lots of stuff. Not to mention when we
were here on vacation when I was young, we saved money by NOT buying
stuff. I feel like my family deserves some good quality Disney
merchandise since we more or less deprived ourselves of it when we
were here. Every time I see a family that reminds me of my own, I
think to myself, “THAT was us when we were here...”
Aside from the daily magical
tribulations that plague the role I am playing, I can openly say that
I love the Disney College Program. God has blessed me with this
opportunity and I want to make the best of it. I have fought illness,
exhaustion, anger, sadness, enemies and friends, yet I am still here
and still operating to the best of my abilities. I pray everyday that
I will follow the path set before me and have the wisdom to know what
that path might look like. Even if I don't I always hope I have the
faith to follow the light even when the ground is not seen. (Much
like the Rockin Roller Coaster in Hollywood Studios!) This blog is my
roster of experiences and I hope all who care to read about it will
read it and be thorough. I'm sure I'll be asking something along
these lines once I am finished (I can't help but end with a quote
from a much loved Disney character):
“Did everyone see that because I will
NOT be doing that again.”
-Captain Jack Sparrow
