End of an Era
The Walt Disney World 50th anniversary celebration started on October 1, 2021. It kicked off an 18 month party that included special events, EAR-idescent costumes and merchandise, and a new paint job on Cinderella Castle. The hubbub clearly marked a milestone for Walt Disney World and for the generations of fans who knew 50 years of memories that included the Florida parks. Unknowingly, it also marked a turning point for me and, arguably, for many of us.
October 2021 was a time when it felt as if the world was finally opening again. Not everything was back to “normal”, but not everything felt as dystopian as it had for the previous 18 months. Personally, I was starting to see through the fog that had covered life for much of that time, and planning our twice-rescheduled (due to the pandemic) trip in November of 2021 had me feeling like Anna and ready to open the gates.
As fate would have it, we were able to snag Annual Passes on that first trip back and would visit numerous times over the next 18 months. Those trips got us thinking about what could be and what could be changed. It was where I reconnected with the person who was excited about life, about possibilities, and started to believe in magic again. (It was actually sitting around having drinks at the Nomad Lounge where we began thinking about moving to a warmer climate!) This is all a long way of saying that Walt Disney World’s 50th anniversary celebration wasn’t just about Walt Disney World. It was a celebration for all of us. It was a chance to splurge on the things that made us smile, just because they made us smile.
With the celebration coming to a close, I can’t help but to be a little nostalgic as I think back to each of the visits. The childlike anticipation of the countdown leading up to a trip, the trepidatious excitement of trying to acclimate to being around masses of people again and the plucky willingness to embrace that something so “silly” could spark so much joy also meant truly filling my cup for the first time. It just goes to show, a little magic can go a long way.
