Total pages in book: 138
Estimated words: 130307 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 652(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130307 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 652(@200wpm)___ 521(@250wpm)___ 434(@300wpm)
We zipped through Fantasyland and Liberty Square, pausing for a bit on Tom Sawyer Island while Ava took a nap in her dad’s arms. Chef Patel seemed grateful for the break, stretching out her legs and soaking up the sunshine while she dozed off in a little nap of her own.
Will and I sat silently next to each other, watching the boat travel back and forth, the people spilling onto the island and walking around a bit before piling back on to head back toward the rides and attractions.
It was the kind of day that made me happy I lived in Florida. The rest of the country was battling blizzards and freezing rain while we had a sunshiney day, the temperature in the seventies and a cool breeze flowing through the trees. It wasn’t a very busy day, either, especially considering it was a Sunday. And having the VIP tour made it easy to get through the park without much hassle of waiting in lines.
When we traipsed over to Adventureland, Chef accompanied Ava to the little girls’ room and Juan took his own leave. Will and I stood guard of all our belongings.
“It’s a very nostalgic place, isn’t it?” I commented, smiling at the sight of a family passing by — the mom pushing the stroller while a little boy rode on top of his dad’s shoulders.
“You come here a lot as a kid?” Will asked.
“Once.”
“Only once?”
“My mom wasn’t exactly a huge fan of Disney,” I explained.
“And I thought I was the scrooge,” Will mused. “Who doesn’t like Disney?”
I sighed, smiling even though my heart hurt a bit at the memory. “I begged my mom for the longest time to come here. She would never let me go when my friends invited me with their families. But one summer, between fifth and sixth grade, she finally brought me. It was just me and her.” I shook my head. “It was one of the best days of my life and one of the worst, too.”
I paused, unsure of whether to continue or not. I knew this was crossing a boundary Will had so clearly spelled out for us.
But then again… he’d asked, hadn’t he?
“Everything was fine until we passed by the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. You know, where you can get your hair and makeup done and they dress you like a princess?” I laughed a bit to myself, staring down at my dirty white sneakers. “I wanted to do it so bad. I remember watching the other girls come out of the castle after getting their makeovers and just whining for my mom to please, please, please let me do one, too.
“But, to my mom, it was the equivalent of me asking to do cocaine,” I said. “She loathed the Disney princesses. She never wanted me to watch their movies. In fact, the ones I had seen were because I snuck them at my friends’ houses and just didn’t tell Mom.”
“Why did she hate them?”
“Because the women were dependent on men,” I answered, lifting my gaze to meet his. “Especially the older movies. It was all about getting married, giving up everything for love. Cinderella was just a poor stepchild until she found a prince. Ariel gave up her voice and mermaid tail to chase Eric on land.” I shrugged. “In my mom’s eyes, the men saved them — and the women wanted to be saved. That was the ultimate sin to my mother and went against everything she wanted to teach me.”
“What about Tiana, though?” Will argued. “She was a bad ass.”
I chuckled. “Okay, first of all — love that you know this. That movie had just come out, actually, right before our visit here. But my mom wouldn’t know how much of a bad ass Tiana was, or see the badassery in any of the princesses because she made her mind up about them years ago. I mean, come on — look at Jasmine! She was the ultimate baddie. She stood up to her father, refused to just be married away as a prize… and the way she played Jafar in the end?” I shook my head. “And Mulan? Hello? She literally fought in war. She was a hero!”
I shrugged, watching my toes again as I kicked a rock around.
“Anyway, it didn’t matter. Part of the reason my mom didn’t bring me here was because she was a single mom fighting to make ends meet as it was. Disney is expensive. And me continually begging to be turned into a princess set my mom into a rage. I can’t blame her, not entirely, anyway. She had done so much to bring me here and I was just too young to understand.” I paused. “She dragged me out of the park kicking and screaming. I wanted to stay for the fireworks. We hadn’t even made it to all the rides. But she was done.”