Hakuna Matata!
We’re not exactly living in a time of no worries, but there’s never a wrong time to dish about Walt Disney World. Am I right or am I right? Oh yeah, Disney, baby, that’s where my head’s at today … or every day to be honest. Why? It’s my ultimate Happy Place. Plus, I just saw an advertisement on Facebook that the menus for the Taste of EPCOT International Food & Wine Festival—only the best festival ever, especially for a foodie and a drinkie (is that a word?) like me!—were released early this morning. Naturally, that stirred up my inner Mouse Junkie and now I’ve got the irresistible urge to write about one of my most-favorite places on Earth.
Hold up, let me put on some tunes from the Disney parks to set the mood …
(If you’re interested, there’s an app called “Sorcerer Radio” that allows you to play the same music you’d hear as if you’re walking along Main Street in the Magic Kingdom, or anywhere in and around Disney World.)
All set? OK, ready, here we go!
Now, generally, when I’m out of sorts, I turn to Josh G. But sometimes, just sometimes, I head in another direction, and that’s Disney, especially the light, soothing, upbeat, cartoony tunes from around the World (see what I did there?). Listening to these melodies makes me want to hop, skip, and jump along the winding path surrounding Crescent Lake or the dusty dirt trail in Fort Wilderness that leads to the rip-roaring, hip-smackin’ Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue. And when it’s warm and humid and even rainy—like today—I step outside and I’m magically transported to Cinderella Castle. It’s so real to me in that moment that I can actually smell Disney in the air. (As I write this, I’m enjoying the gusty winds and howling rains of Tropical Storm Fay, and I can’t help but think there’s something poetic in writing about Disney while in the midst of a (albeit mild) hurricane-like storm.)
What does Disney smell like, you ask? Mmmmmmm, like the freshly brewed coffee and warm cinnamony confections oozing out of the Main Street Bakery. Or the fiery, BBQ-y, tangy, hops-y (think craft beer!) scents emanating from the dozens of booths circling World Showcase Lagoon during Food & Wine. Or the crisp aroma of trees and flowers and fresh-cut grass in the early morning quiet, mingling with the salty tang of the High Rock Spring Pool (that’s the main pool at the Saratoga Springs Resort). Ahhhhh, it’s such a rush, and a moment I breathe in over and over again as I saunter—Disney mug in hand!—to the dining hall for my morning coffee. This overwhelming surge of happiness, excitement, and child-like wonder takes over my body. Ask my husband. There are times when I call him outside (yes, here at our home in Jersey) just to tell him “Babe, it feels and smells like a Disney morning today.” Man, I love those days.
My latest bout of Disney mania started the other night (as if I needed an excuse). Remember my story about how I reprimanded my daughter over nothing important? Well, after that fiasco, my husband suggested I cool down in our bedroom while he took the kids downstairs. And that’s where I found myself, lying on my bed watching virtual videos of some of the rides at Disney World. I giddily immersed myself in Soarin’ (my absolute favorite ride at the World), Pirates of the Caribbean, and Frozen Ever After, a huge smile on my face. Even hearing the music from those rides conjures up feelings of lightness and joy and peace. After the evening I’d had, just allowing myself to sink into a Disney frame of mind instantly eased my anxieties, diminished my melancholy, and lifted my bruised spirits. That’s what Disney does for my psyche, plain and simple. And that feeling has simmered within me for the past two days.
As if you couldn’t already tell, my family are huge Disney buffs. We try to visit once or twice a year—when time and money allow, of course. We had our next trip scheduled for early December of this year (after a few failed attempts, we finally scored reservations for a two-bedroom villa in Kidani Village at Animal Kingdom Lodge), but COVID-19 swiped that off the table. I realize Disney opens for business tomorrow, but we cancelled our trip anyways because my husband and I decided we’re not willing to gamble with our kids’ health in the midst of cold and flu season. Especially when the powers that be expect the coronavirus to rear (continue to rear?) its uber-ugly head again in the fall. The irony isn’t lost on me, though: The one year my family truly, madly, deeply needs the fun, carefree adventures that only Disney can offer—for the sake of all our mental health—is now the one year we’re thwarted. You can’t see me right now but I’m shaking my head in disappointment and sorrow.
The saddest part is that right now, 2020, is shaping up to be perhaps the best time to visit the House of Mouse—for my family at least. Disney Vacation Club rentals are being offered at hugely discounted prices, crowds are expected to be at near-record-low levels, EPCOT’s Food & Wine Festival—one of my absolute favorite things to do in all of Disney—opens July 15 (it typically begins in late-August/early September) and will run until the fall, and a majority of the night parades and extravaganzas have been cancelled! Now, you may be asking why that last tidbit is a positive. Well, my family generally doesn’t stay for the nighttime goodies because my young kids often prefer hanging out at the resort pool after a day at the parks, and standing in line with cranky kids waiting to board annoyingly crowded buses at midnight just isn’t my cup of tea—even if it is served in a cup as cute as Chip! Plus, my kids turn into crazy heads if they don’t get enough sleep. This means we wouldn’t miss out on any of the nighttime fun and there probably wouldn’t be huge crowds because (I would think) most guests tend to hang around for the late-night parades and shows. So, you see?! It’s the best possible time for my family to go, and yet we’re not. It makes me terribly blue.
But you know what? As much as I long to go to Disney (and I loooooooooong to go to Disney), I know deep in my heart that cancelling was the right thing to do, as a responsible parent. Because I will do everything and anything in my power to keep my kids safe. And taking a long-distance vacation to a state that’s swarming with coronavirus cases, during what’s also expected to be a longer and more rugged cold and flu season, is, well, irresponsible (understatement of the year, I know). Plus, I have absolutely no desire to hop on a plane with my children anytime soon. (Don’t think for a second, though, that my inner child isn’t throwing the mother of all tantrums over this devastation.) I will say this, for what it’s worth, I have the utmost respect and confidence that Disney World will stand by its word and take the necessary precautions to ensure guests’ comfort and safety. It’s the rest of the world I don’t trust.
So, instead of being upset and depressed and ungrateful about missing out on my most cherished Happy Land, I’ve decided to focus on the silver linings, and there are several:
First, my family will stay safe and, God willing, healthy because we chose to sacrifice and not risk traveling.
Second, it’s likely going to take Disney management some time to figure out the logistics for maneuvering around and through this pandemic, and I’m hoping they will iron out all the kinks over the next year or so (depending, of course, on how the pandemic plays out)—just in time for our next trip (fingers crossed!!).
Third, I’m the type of person who loves to plan, to organize, to research and strategize, especially when it comes to Disney vacations. In fact, sometimes I enjoy all the advance preparation just as much as the vacation itself (yes, I’m weird)! So, while we won’t be hanging out with Mickey and the Gang this year, I’m hopeful for next summer and that gives me a delicious year of imagining and yearning and planning our next World adventure.
Fourth, I’ve seen, I’ve felt what being in Disney does for my mental health, for my spirit on any ordinary day of the year (and that of my kids, too). Whenever I’m there, all the negativity, all the responsibility, all the chaos that my mind and body hold onto when I’m home simply melt away. My biggest decisions are whether I want fries with my D-Luxe burger or coleslaw with my ribs from the Polite Pig, which craft beer (chocolate stout anyone?!) or fruity cocktail I’m going to pour down my gullet, or whether I really want to gobble up that third Mickey ears ice cream—a luscious lovely of smooth vanilla ice cream smothered in dark chocolate (the answer is always a resounding YES, by the way).
So, I can only imagine the magical relief that will wash over my body, my spirit, my soul when I’m finally able to step around that corner onto Main Street and catch that first glimpse of Cinderella Castle. After this horrifying, terrifying, stupid beast of a year. God himself won’t be able to stop the tears of joy that I know will be flowing down my face in that moment. That moment when I finally return “home.” And I know it will be so worth this long wait.
Until that time, though, I’ll be here wishing upon the brightest star that the strife in this world ends soon and we can all take pleasure and find solace in our own personal version of The Happiest Place On Earth, wherever that happens to be.