A few days ago on Facebook, I posted that I was going to start a new blog wherein I would discuss and analyze the quotes of Walt Disney and the ways in which each quote applies to my life. That is still the overall plan for this blog. However, I picked today to start for a very special reason. Exactly one year ago today I left for the Disney College Program. I know that this has stirred within me a rollercoaster of emotions every time I talk about it; as I look back on it though, I realize that the college program was the best thing that ever happened to me, for the good reasons and the bad.
1. I made so many awesome friends that I will have forever now. All it takes is a kind word or smile from a friend to lift you up even on the worst of days. I made true friends at Disney, ones that saw me for who I was, and didn't see my chair. I realize something else. My Disney friends and I never fought. We were always laughing, sometimes even at our own expense. (Example: Once we went to the Magic Kingdom and I was focusing so hard on not losing Brad and Andy that I smacked right into a pole. Only me. You just gotta laugh.) Maybe it was my loneliness in living alone that made me so happy to see my friends. Speaking of loneliness, that brings me to my next point.
2.Loneliness moves to action
I spent so much time being lonely in my room that I had a lot of time to reflect on the gravity of my situation. The circumstances I am in do not have a singular thing I can blame them on. I am disabled. That is not my fault. Some of the things associated with my disability probably are my fault, but as I was just a kid and didn't realize the gravity of the choice I was making, I cannot take full blame for that and should not beat myself up about it. However, realizing this was key. It was with this realization that I came to this conclusion:
If I don't like my situation, it is up to ME to change it. No one but me.
3. I got to go into the Parks, every day, any time I wanted, for FREE.
Let's be honest. I can talk all I want about wanting to make a difference, or being a dreamer like Walt, or the kids' smiles making it worth it. All of that is TRUE, and I am not trying to lessen it. But what drew me to the DCP, as I'm sure draws thousands of others, was the free park tickets. And that my friends, proves that Disney Execs know precisely what they are doing. In the beginning, I couldn't care less about the meager wage or long hours, I just cared about the magic of being there. I guess somewhere along the way I forgot that.
4. I DID make a difference. Even though "Sticker Guy" was a fabricated title, and at times the list of duties that came with it felt demeaning, as in "let's keep the guy in the wheelchair busy", here's the bare facts. Stickers and pins make kids happy. You can look at the negative or the positive. That's a choice. At the present moment, I am choosing to acknowledge the positive. I probably made the day of every kid that came in that shop, and judging by some of their reactions, there's no probably about it. (Example: One day, I was giving out Snow White stickers and a little girl was ecstatic because Snow White was her favorite. She said, "This is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen!" ) And that, ladies and gentlemen, will make even the crappiest of days worthwhile.
5. Darby
Darby was the best thing to happen as a direct result of my DCP. While at Disney, I met my very dear friend Katelyn Martin, who also has cerebral palsy like me. She told me about My Angel with Paws, I signed up in early June, and got the call about Darby on August 6th, four days after my college program ended. It's like Darby was the ultimate consolation prize. I am so thankful. God has brought me through so much in the past year. I've applied for grad school, a teaching job, have started working out at the gym, and am resolved that this will be the year I finish my novel.
2014....to infinity and beyond!
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