Finally - its time :) I've been thinking about what to write in this blog for about a month - since I was on my way back to the hotel from Disneyworld back in November. There are more things that I want to say than will fit in a normal-length blog post...so either I'll leave things out, or you'll have to bear with me and sit tight for awhile this time. And honestly, as much as I have to say - I'm not sure I can put it all into words.
Let me take you back 11 years and share with you something I wrote about my dad and our special Disney bond we shared. My mom had asked that people write letters for a compilation book that she planned to make so that my brothers and I could see the impact our dad had on all the people in his life. So, April 14, 1998 (I was 13 so please excuse any errors!) I sat down to make my contribution to the book:
My daddy. I could write all day long, my daddy was the best by far. I have a thousand and one memories. I could tell you about everything from his "Emmitt Smith voice" to his special love for all, kids and family. But I want to tell you about something that only I shared with him and that only I know about.
I always looked forward to Disney on Ice. That meant that I got to go on a date with my daddy. I went four years in a row. The third time I went, when I was 8, is my most treasured memory. He had a standard truck. Whenever it was time to shift gears, he held the clutch while I shifted gears. I felt very special, he was letting me help him drive. None of my friends dads were like that; mine was special and I knew that. He had bought seats on the ice - I loved it when he did that. As we walked down to our seats I made sure that everyone saw me, with my daddy, on our date. After we were seated, before the show, he took me up to the toy racks to pick out my prize. I
had the ones from the year before: Scuttle, the seagull from the Little Mermaid and the free fanny pack they had given me upon admission. When I went to look at the toys, I looked only for a second and saw him. He was the bad guy from a movie not many people watched, that meant no one would have this one. I point to it. My daddy did not understand why I picked the little, fat monkey King Louie. He made sure that was the one I wanted before making the purchase. We went back to our seats as I closely held the new treasure that was thought to be forgotten in a few weeks. I tried to put Louie in the fanny pack with Scuttle, but he was simply too fat. I really didn't care though, I loved him and that is all that mattered.
That's not the end though. Louie was not thrown on the top bunk with my others. (I had quite a few). He was too special for that; he got to sleep with me. Every night before turning out my light I'd lay in bed and listen. I heard my parents go into my brothers' room to say goodnight. I would listen to their door shut and in 15 seconds mine would open. My mom always said goodnight first. Then it was my dad's turn. He gave Louie a unique voice too, a special one. Every morning he'd make Louie tickle me and tell me that the prettiest third (or fourth, or fifth) grader needed to get up for school.
Often while daddy was sick, I'd take Louie to his room and let him sleep with him for awhile. But Louie always went everywhere I went, and he still does. A few nights before daddy died, the Thursday before, I took Louie out to him for the last time. He stayed out there, hanging from daddy's bed, until he died.
To this day, as always, Louie wipes my tears, his long arms are really good for that. To this day, as always, I tell him ALL my problems. He's a really good listener, despite his tiny ears.
I take him to school quite often. People have stopped asking me why or telling me how "ugly" he is. because I'll never, ever let anyone talk me out of wanting him around, and to me, Louie is the most beautiful thing there is. To me, Louie is alive.
I still cry at the thought of my daddy. I still get angry when people sit there and have the nerve to complain about their dads. Then I have to remember, its ok, they do not have what I had, so its ok. No one will ever have what I had, so it really is ok.
God blessed me, and every day that little, fat bad guy from the Jungle Book, King Louie, reminds me of the blessing I had, and the blessing that lives within me. My daddy.
I still have King Louie. I took him on my honeymoon like I told my dad I would, and he still lives in my bedroom like he has for the last 17 years. In fact, he is the only one of my animals who has not found a home in William's room. So I'm sure you can imagine my delight when a parade took place just 5 minutes after I got into the gates of Disneyworld and Louie was one of the characters on the floats!!! It is a 2.5 minute video, but Louie appears about midway through if you want to fast forward.
That was the start of the night for me. The gates weren't sparkly golden like I had envisioned them to be, but there was a pretty building all lit up with Christmas-type lights to make the entrance all the more appealing. I got to Disneyworld at around 6:00 and made my way down Main street and into the various sections of Magic Kingdom. I was stunned at how crowded it was given that it was a weeknight, not anytime around a holiday, and that we are supposed to be in a "recession". I walked around with a smile on my face the whole time - enjoying seeing the miscellaneous characters, the smiles on kids' faces, all the different rides...granted I couldn't ride anything, but that was ok. I got to see it all and that was enough for me.
I didn't get to stay very long, since the park closes at 8 and the last shuttle back to my hotel was at 8:45, but I got to walk through Minnie's house, see Cinderella's Castle from all different angles, meet a fewof the Princesses, and my favorite part: I saw the nightly fireworks show at Cinderella's Castle.
For anyone who hasn't been, or who has missed this part, after the park gates close at 8:00 they put on a firework show. Jimminy Cricket is the MC/narrator and the 20 minute show consists of characters from various Disney movies singing some of the most famous songs. My personal favorite part of the show was when the Genie from Aladdin sang "you ain't never had a friend like me" That's one of my favorite songs, and the fireworks that went with it were pretty awesome. I got a lot of pictures during the show, but I'll just share my favorite one:
In the end, its really hard for me to actually verbalize what a wonderful night I had. I had no idea that I really could enjoy walking around a theme park, by myself, that much. But I did. It lived up to what I wanted it to be, and I can't wait until the day when I can go back...next time with William though, so he can enjoy the magic too. I don't know that there is a happier place on earth.
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