ArcaMax

By pure luck, I traveled to Walt Disney World with my husband and my son just last week between hurricanes Helene and Milton. Milton made landfall in Florida as a category 3 hurricane. We planned this vacation months ago according to our son's fall break from school.

This trip was our first family vacation that didn't revolve around also visiting a relative. We decided to go to Disney just because we wanted to. It was glorious time spent together. We walked all day and had the blisters to prove it. Despite being October, it was hot and humid. Sweat poured off us as the temperature reached 90 degrees. The day we spent at Epcot, it rained. We adorned ponchos, but our feet got soggy wet, squishing in our gym shoes. It didn't matter; we were thrilled to be there. It's the "happiest place on earth," after all.

Every "cast member" greeted us with "Hi, friends!" and left us with "Have a magical day!" The one exception was the person staying in the room next to us at the resort. We could hear anger-filled f-bombs clearly through the shared wall as he declared "I effing hate this" repeatedly. When the cleaning crew showed up one morning and knocked on their door, the same angry man shouted at top volume, "We're still sleeping!"

I wanted to ask him why he was there, but I didn't dare. Had someone talked him into this vacation? Would he have rather gone fishing with his friends? He clearly wasn't having any fun, but as a grown man, he surely wasn't being held against his will at a cartoon-themed resort. He must have agreed to be there.

I can only assume he was determined to be miserable and make everyone else miserable in the process. I don't understand this at all. If you say yes to something -- even if begrudgingly -- then follow through without complaint. Otherwise, for the sake of everyone involved, just say no.

This angry man provided a stark contrast to the rest of our vacation. We were all in for this experience. We had decided to be present and enjoy everything about each other and Disney that we could. Rain and blisters be damned.

We planned for this family vacation. We budgeted and saved. Plunked down the money in payments, took time off work and got on a plane with the intention of spending time together as a family. The experience was ours to shape. Our approach and our attitudes were intentional. The weather was beyond our control. The temporary delays for rides were also out of our control. But we posed with every character, enjoyed every live show, took advantage of every fun photo op and smiled so much our cheeks hurt. Not to mention we indulged in park-themed treats such as apple strudel at Epcot, chocolate-covered bananas at Animal Kingdom and a giant "Wookie Cookie" at Hollywood Studios (split three ways).

Life is what we make of it. Our attitudes are ours to decide. My family and I were incredibly grateful that by pure luck, we traveled between the hurricanes. But mostly we are grateful for one another. We are grateful for our time spent together as a family doing something new with the expectation that we're in it for the experience, whatever that may bring. There is no greater gift than being fully present with the ones you love.

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