Fade In On a Girl

Well, I am about to enter my third week here in hot and usually sunny Florida. I honestly forgot how warm it is here, and it's not even truly summer yet.

If you are following on my journey, you are most likely wondering how my transition back to work has been. Well, it has been bumpy. I have some new things to learn and some new people to work with. I guess the best word to describe it all is: different. I knew it was going to be different because most of the people that I once worked so close with are gone and off in different places. 

I've been getting asked why I came back. Yes, the original concept was for networking. Then the addition of staying with the company was added as of last month. But now, above all those things, I had to explore all my options. I knew that I had missed out on things during my college program. And now that I'm back, it is helping me decide who I am and what I want to do. No, I'm not 100% sure yet, but I still have some time to decide. 

Did Somebody Say Adventure?

I never realized that 138 days could fly by as quickly as they have. Around 2 p.m. this afternoon, I will be on the road to Orlando for the summer.

This time last year, I could not wait to get out of Orlando. But, I was definitely not my best self a year ago. I struggled with more internal emotions than I ever had. However, those struggles made me a stronger person. Many times I was so close to quitting, but I made it through. And here I am going back to the place I thought I wouldn't return to for quite some time.

In my life, I have gone back and forth to places many times. If you were to draw a map of my life journey, there would be a lot of zigzags and paths crossed twice. It would look like a mess most likely. But those zigzags and locations traveled to are what made me who I am. And now I'm going down another path for the second time.

But there's a difference: I'm going as a different person. I'm more open minded, willing, and expecting the unexpected. I'm looking forward to see some of the past I left behind, but also hoping to find a future.

For now, I'm going to have fun! No classes, no homework, and no shifts for a week! It's time for adventure, just please pray I get there safely!

When there's a smile in your heart
There's no better time to start
Think of all the joy you'll find
When you leave the world behind
And bid your cares good-bye
You can fly! You can fly! You can fly!

Seize the Day

As I sit here angrily finishing up a group projects, I am quickly reminded that I will be back in WDW in 11 short days. It feels like just yesterday that my countdown was at 150 days and time was crawling slower than a snail. And it seems that in just a blink of an eye, two semesters are in the past, a job is in the past, and a position of class leadership is in the past. How often the things that seem to have no end are the ones that pass by the fastest.

Another thing that is coming to an end that I also thought was timeless is the campus representative program. I have been fortunate enough to have spent the past two semesters promoting the Disney College Program on campus. I have gotten to be at career fairs, given small announcements in class, and mentored new participants who were as excited as I was upon acceptance. I was absolutely devastated when I got the bad news email that was surrounded by much fluff and Disney happiness (the perfect example on how a business should deliver bad news). I got the same emotion that the newsboys in Newises must have felt when the price of the “papes” was raised. How could this happen? Why? It was my job security in the Walt Disney Company until I graduated and was ready to move onto the next level of internships, or so I thought. But, everything happens for a reason. And the summer I had been looking forward to for the past 150 or so days was not only going to be filled with joy, but stress on trying to transfer to seasonal.

Me deciding back in December to work this summer was actually a blessing in disguise, and was preparing me for the news that was to come. If I had not decided to work in Disney this summer, my chances of even trying to go seasonal would be slim to none, since there is a certain requirement of hours worked per year that would not likely be filled. And I am proud to announce that I am in contact with my AMAZING leaders who are looking into opening up a seasonal position for me. I am one of many testimonies that when you work hard in the job you’re given, it pays forward. Being a CP is hard stuff, especially in the Magic Kingdom. There’s long hours, crazy guests, rain, busy stores, rain, tired feet, and did I mention RAIN?! But at the same time, there’s a front row seat to the parades and fireworks, magical moments to create and witness, rain storms that bring rainbows, and more smiles among the frowns. So I worked my hardest as a CP, and now that I am in need of help, that hard work is appearing to pay forward to my future positions.

And as the Newsies said in the face of Pulitzer:

Now is the time to seize the day
Stare down the odds and seize the day
Minute by minute that’s how you win it
We will find a way
But let us seize the day