Last week Katie, Jon, and I headed to Magic Kingdom to celebrate their newly gained Passholder status in style. Katie had set our agenda, and we had three main objectives.
- Ride Mine Train
- Eat corn dog nuggets at Casey’s Corner
- Watch Happily Ever After
All of that sounded great to me. I was just ecstatic to be going to the parks without my two tagalongs. I love my children, but they are not always the best park companions. I dug out a Disney t-shirt, slung my Kate Spade phone case/wallet crossbody over me, and walked out of the door without having to pack a diaper bag, dig out the stroller, or get three other people ready to go. We were already starting out on a great foot.
When we arrived at MK the crowds were THICK. I had not been to the parks in a little while, and I seemed to have forgotten which tennis shoes were a no-go. AND that socks were a necessity. So the first stop, much to Katie’s exasperation, was to walk through the main street shops to find socks. After 30 minutes of hunting, I was able to locate a long pair of neon and black dressy-type socks. Oh well. I paid approximately 1 hundred dollars for them, walked outside to sit in the corner like a child, and proceeded to take off my shoes and put on my socks. Fast forward and we were going ten miles per hour on the “thrilling” Big Thunder Mountain and the day was looking swell. We passed the day in a blur with rides on Mine Train (superior ride), the People Mover, and stuffing our faces with mickey bars and Casey’s corn dogs.
Now, before I agreed to go with them, I asked if they were the type of people who camped out hours before just to watch the fireworks. They laughed and said no. But I soon found out that they were casual LIARS. Two hours before the fireworks began, they walked into the viewing area and parked it. I was NOT happy. I did not understand why people would wait two hours for fireworks. It’s just fireworks, right? I had been in the parks at night several times, and I had taken advantage of everyone’s rapt attention of the castle. I had skipped through 5-minute lines on Buzz Lightyear and enjoyed an empty Pirates. I had caught a glimpse of the fire in the Disney sky (Disney literally owns the air rights to all of their parks) but paid little attention to it. They. were. just. fireworks…. right?
Wrong. As the first notes started in the cacophony of musical melodies in the opening number, I knew that I had wasted every opportunity that I had had to see this show. I started crying. Tears silently rolled down my cheeks as I was overcome with music, lights, and wonderful visual images of all of my favorite Disney films. I literally gasped out loud when the balloons from UP ascended towards the castle spires. I could not believe that I had not afforded my children the opportunity to watch the show. I had believed that riding the same rides that they could ride for the rest of their lives was more important than experiencing Happily Ever After which had only been with us for a short time.
As I watched, I worked through the five stages of grief.
- Shock. How could Disney have created such a magnificent show? And how could it be “retired” already? How would they ever be able to construct something to rival this show? They couldn’t.
- Denial. No, there was no way that Disney would get rid of this show. It would definitely be back. I had plenty of time to watch it. This show would live on forever if fans had anything to say about it. I could start an online petition, flood Twitter with tweets to Disney, and rally the people to bring Happily Ever back.
- Anger. How had I been so blind sighted? I had denied my children the opportunity to witness this show time and time again. I was angry at myself for being a terrible mother.
- Bargaining. Disney Gods, if you are out there, please let me give my children a chance to see this show. Please intervene on our behalf and convince Chapek to keep it running for the rest of their childhood.
- Depression. Tears flowed heavily as I realized how much of my life I had wasted not stopping to relish the opportunities to bask in the glow of the castle as I watched this show over and over. Would life ever be good again?
As the fireworks came to an end and the madness descended, I found myself staring up at the sky that once burned red. The chaos of families storming main street to make it to the monorails and boats did not even faze me. I just stood and allowed myself to feel all of these feelings and to be truly thankful for this night. Finally, I reached acceptance. It still stung, but there was nothing that I could do to change the past. We may not have had a long time, but we had had one hell of a time.
Happily Ever After, you were the best fireworks show that I have or will ever see. I will never forget you. See you on the other side.
Basically yours,
Ariel
