A Realistic Look at Disney and Life

Our family recently went to Disney World. I love everything about Disney: the neatly manicured streets, the fun rides, the upbeat music subtlety playing in the background of your day, the polite “cast members. It’s nearly perfect. But it’s not. I’m sure behind the scenes chaos can and does reign. Because behind-the-scenes is the real life of Disney and no matter how much we disguise, cover up and conceal, life is messy, hard, complicated, and confusing. 

People get sick. Babies cry. People lose their jobs. They fight and gossip, are rude and not dependable. It rains on days you need the sun to shine and it’s hot when a cool breeze is so needed. Things rarely go as hoped for and expectations are often unmet. 

As perfect as Disney tried to make our week, it wasn’t. I got sick. The babies got tired and cried. The lines for the fun rides were long. A cell phone was lost. Our food was cold. The hotel, while on the Disney grounds, required lots of walking. 

But we did it. And we had fun. Why? Because life is not going to be perfect. Ever. And on many levels, we get that and go on. There are other things we should understand about “not perfect.” We should understand if we live our lives being so anxious about what could go wrong that we don’t go anywhere or do anything, then Satan has won a victory. We should understand that a glimpse into history shows us that much more could go then crying babies and cold French fries. In fact, war, famine, drought, disease, fire, cruel rulers, and poverty exist today. Even in America, land of the free, home of the brave, bad things happen every day. 

I have a concern that we are living in a time when stress is high and coping skills are low. I’m not being critical; I’m just stating facts. I can’t answer why this is true. I can guess. Perhaps it’s because as a country we haven’t experienced hard times, on the scale of a war, in decades. Or perhaps social media is sending the wrong message and expectations for everything are high which make stress levels soar. I don’t know. But I do know humans are struggling right now. Everyone is “stressed out.” I don’t even remember hearing that term in my teen years, yet most teens today would describe themselves as “stressed out.” And, certainly, most parents do. 

So, how can we cope better? How can we help our children and grandchildren cope better? These tips I’m about to point out are just guesses, or my opinion, but perhaps they can help you in some way. 

First of all, we need acknowledge this one reality— life IS hard. Wait, you’re thinking, I already know this. That’s why I’m so stressed out. There’s a difference in knowing something and really knowing something and using that knowledge to change behavior in some way. So, it’s about not just saying the words, life is hard, it’s about lowering your expectations about life and being content with the not-so-perfect day you might be living. While at Disney we discovered there are signs posted on each ride telling guests how long the wait time for that ride will be. We also discovered those wait times are a tad cushioned as guests are happier with an hour wait if they thought it was going to be an hour and a half, so they post a hour and a half when an hour is more likely. Do you see what Disney is doing? Disney is manipulating our thinking by allowing us to think we are getting a good deal when it’s still a long wait. I’m not saying, live your life like a pessimist, expecting the worst, but be realistic. Know that the trip to the store with a toddler will be challenging. Know that your job might frustrate you and your teens most certainly will. If the pursuit of an unrealistic perfection is wearing you smooth, stop pursuing it. Start pursuing a realistic perfection. If you make it to the grocery store and back with the toddler and everyone is safe, consider the trip perfect. Get it? 

The second thing you can do is look for the fun. Everything in life isn’t fun or funny but most things have some fun somewhere if we look for it. We had two toddlers, without their parents, on our Disney trip. Now that’s a recipe for disaster. But we looked for the fun in every moment. The sprinkler outside of our door became a favorite as two giggling boys ran their hands through the cool water. It would have been easy for us go around that potential messy area, but we went straight for it, allowing the boys to touch the fun. To keep them distracted, we pointed out trees and dogs and clouds and birds. In other words, we looked for the fun or, another way to put it, the beauty in the moment. As we get older, we stop looking at the pretty clouds or the happy dog. We look at our phones or more deeply into the hurt we’ve been handed. Maybe you need to run through a sprinkler and don’t worry if you get wet. Most things aren’t nothing but a thing that can be cleaned up, cleared up or dried up. So, look for the fun even in tough situations. 

The third thing you can do is look for the places God shows up. When sin entered the world bad things were set in motion. Sickness, death, bad attitudes, poor decisions, all kinds of bad things are in the world because Satan lied to Eve and Eve bought into that lie. From that point on, sin has had its run of the world. But that doesn’t mean sin rules, it just means Satan runs around like He’s in control. Satan is like that two-year-old who thinks he rules a moment until a loving parent steps in and tells him otherwise. Make no mistake, God is in control and has the final word. One of everyone’s favorite rides is the Rocking roller coaster at Hollywood Studios. It’s full of ups and down and twists and turns and you feel like you’re going to lose your lunch, but in the end, it’s a smooth finish. A roller coaster describes life so well. It’s full of twists and turn, ups and down, good and bad seasons, but God is in control and if you keep your eyes on Him, He has promised a smooth and beautiful ending. When you face a particularly tough season, open your eyes to see where God will show up. Even better, anticipate the “showing up.” My heart was broken last year when a highly anticipated mission trip was canceled due to Covid concerns. I remarked that I couldn’t wait for God to reveal why the trip was canceled. Sure enough, on day two of what was to be our trip, one of our group members came down with the flu. It would have been terrible for her to be that sick in a foreign country. God isn’t in the sickness, but he’s all about the healing and the helping us manage the sickness. Look for Him to show up. 

I hope something in these words will help you as you prepare for a new year that is sure to bring ups and downs. I don’t have this thing completely figured out either. Like you, I get frustrated and tired and am not my best self on occasion, but I’m working on it and try to have realistic expectations, look for fun and watch for God to show up in all things.

Hugs, Chrys