Going to Walt Disney World sucks! I know that I just lost half of you, but please hear me out. For most of us a trip to Disney begins 18 months in advance sometimes even earlier. You’re sitting on the couch with your spouse after a long day catching up on all of the memes and political bickering Facebook has to offer. Your child is watching the latest Disney Channel preteen drama/pseudo-comedy on t.v. when a commercial comes on for Walt Disney World. It partially catches your attention as pleasant memories of trips long-past flood into your mind. Then you have a brief moment of panic and share a fearful look with your spouse as your child says, “I want to go to Disney World.”
The next day you begin looking at dates. The conversation goes something like this:
“May through August is the logical time to visit since Timmy is out of school, but it’s roughly 217 degrees in FL during the summer and everyone on the planet is visiting since their children are out of school as well.”
“Well we can’t go during November or December because my parents are visiting for the holidays and they never get to see Timmy.”
“ I’m not sure about going during the other months because Timmy would have to miss a week of school, and you know how stressed he gets if he misses class and falls behind.”
You know the conversation well so I won’t bore you with the rest of the 30 minute discussion. At the end you have settled on a particular week and start browsing online for the cost of park-hopper tickets and resort stays. You then learn that even though your last trip 5 years ago almost sent you into bankruptcy the cost of visiting now is approximately 364% higher. Now the real fun begins.
For the next 12 months you work 6-day weeks. During your very little off-time you take up crafting so that you can make every birthday, anniversary, and Christmas gift for everyone in your life for the next year and a half. You almost forget little Timmy’s name because who has time between working, saving, crafting, and vacation planning to spend quality time with your child? But its about quality not quantity, right? Plus, it will all be worth it when we see the look on What’s His Name’s face…blah, blah, blah.
Finally, the day comes when the year of sacrifice is over. You feel a sense of accomplishment as you click the button on your reservation. You quickly exit out of the browser before the confirmation receipt comes through. There’s no need in seeing that number. You only need the satisfaction of having done it. However, your work is not finished is it? No, no, no it is not. Now you spend countless hours online scheduling your Fastpasses and planning out your days to the minute. You know that you just saved enough money for the trip, but now why not use the credit card for the character meet-and-greet lunch that will really make Timmy’s day. I mean who knows when you’ll go back right? And we’ll pay off the card next month anyway 😉
Now it’s time for the trip. You’ll notice I skipped the part where you pack, then unpack, then re-pack, then un-pack again over and over until you are certain that every necessary item is accounted for. Up until now you’ve been riding the high of planning a trip to Disney. No matter how difficult the last year has been you’ve gotten through it because you know that the pay-off is worth it. At least you hope it is. But now we have to travel. You’re either trying to get 12 bags checked and little Timmy through the security checkpoint at the airport just to try to keep him quiet and entertained for the duration of the flight, or you are suffering through 47 “are we there yets” during your 26 hour drive to the park. Either way you really begin questioning whether or not this trip is worth the hassle.
At this point I know that you are smiling as you remember your past trips to Disney. So why do we do it? How does Walt Disney World command that much dedication and commitment? Because we know that the magic and fun and life-long memories happen once we get there. The truth is once you see Mickey and friends at the gate the sacrifice it took to get there seems small.
So what is the point?
Your martial arts journey is like a trip to Disney. You begin with a fearful look in your eye as a white belt. You put in years of painful sacrifice. You get kicked in the ribs, punched in the face, twisted, contorted, stretched, bruised, bloodied, sweaty almost daily. Sore muscles and stiff joints become your new normal. And at some point you begin to question whether or not this quest for black belt is worth it.
Then finally that magical day happens, and you receive the black belt that you have sought after for so long. This is the same moment as when you see the gate at Disney World. However, unlike your trip to Disney so many martial arts students choose at this moment to stop. They have their black belt in hand and decide to quit. Would you turn the car around just as you reach the parking lot of Walt Disney World? Of course you wouldn’t. Why? Because it took sacrifice and dedication to reach that point and the real fun comes once you go in. Life-long memories come after you reach the gate. Smiles, laughs, friendships, and shared experiences happen once you enter the park.
Just like your Disney trip the real fun and enjoyment of martial arts begins after you get to the rank of black belt. It took so much dedication and sacrifice to make it to this rank. Why would you ever stop now? Deep life-long friendships are ahead. Smiles, laughs and endless fun are ahead. I started this blog by saying “Going to Walt Disney World sucks.” But I want to add…
BEING IN WALT DISNEY WORLD IS AWESOME!!!
