Tag: Memories
When You Wish

When You Wish

By |

“Each of us has a dream, a heart’s desire that calls to us. And when we’re brave enough to listen and bold enough to pursue, that dream will lead us on a journey to discover who we are. All we have to do is look inside our hearts and unlock the magic within.”*

I was sitting in the Tiki Birds attraction with my daughter, granddaughter, and son-in-law. The same exact birds with their mechanical sounds and movements that I saw when I was a kid…decades ago. As I watched, I had a flashback of hearing rain and sitting in the room with my mother, dad, and brother back in the 1970’s. I don’t have many actual memories of my father when he was still alive. He died in 1981 after a long illness so having that memory was very special. And then, the program concluded with the sound of intense rain and I knew the memory was true and that our family had come back to life in that Tiki Bird show, if only for a few moments. 

The last time I was at Disney World, I was celebrating my 30th birthday and my daughter was five. Now, she’s in her 30’s and her daughter is four. Experiencing it through my granddaughter’s heart opened a doorway for me to remember…to embrace my imagination, my child self.

The short time we were there, we claimed every moment of magic we could. My tech savvy daughter and son-in-law kept us moving from princesses to roller coasters to shows in a seemingly endless parade of fun. One day over eight miles walking…the next day over eleven miles of walking and opening to the creative genius of the Imagineers.

I’d forgotten what a roller coaster junkie I am and the two new ones, Tron and Guardians of the Galaxy, were epic. And new, mega-famous princesses and stories and attractions related to the new characters were top rate in regard to animation, presentation, and WOW factor. 

Many Disney World attractions have changed over the decades since I visited; however, a few remain the same. And that familiarity opened the door to a treasured memory from my own childhood while I created new ones with Emily, Max, and Kevin. 

Even though I returned home utterly exhausted, I feel a deep sense of renewal and opening, of looking within and listening to my heart so the magic within can be unlocked once more. 

*Introduction to Disney World fireworks presentation each night.
The Magic of Memories

The Magic of Memories

By |

The other day a friend of mine commented how a video on the Fontana Lake Cleanup brought back such good, childhood memories for him. As my canine companion, Buddy, and I walked at Deep Creek today I reflected on my happiest childhood memory.

My immediate family, mom’s sister and her family, grandparents, aunt and uncle and another extended family went to the Smokies together…14 of us in total. One day in particular was amazing. My cousins, brother and I went tubing on Deep Creek. The water was so cold yet I couldn’t bring myself to get out. Our parents were watching from the picnic tables and we were having a big time.

Before my dad got sick and before all of the adulting there was this magical time in the mountains that became my most treasured memory of family.

When I was feeling the pull back to the mountains, I was trying to find a place around Asheville, where I had lived before, or Black Mountain and there was absolutely nothing that worked. My house in Alabama was getting attention but nothing was working out for a sale. For over 18 months I looked and looked and couldn’t believe the dumps with high prices for sale around Asheville. 

So I finally got a contract on my home and had to find a place. As I drove past the sign for Dillsboro, Sylva and Cherokee on my way to Asheville, I heard a question: Where did you always want to live as a child? But I was worried that living an hour away from Asheville would be difficult and too scary to start over…again…far from everyone I knew. But as it happened, a cousin saw my social media post about looking once again in the Asheville area for a home and he said, You gotta meet our cousin in Sylva. And in the end, it was that question I heard that opened my mind to hearing what my Sylva cousin had to say about the area.

Yesterday I sat at the dining table in my little cabin and gazed out at the mountain ridge of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. I live here, I said aloud. My childhood dream realized. Eight miles via the back way into the Deep Creek area from my door…that’s how close I live to my happiest childhood memory.

It’s hard to always know what calls us to certain places. But this time around, I felt I owed it to myself to align with the happiest place I remembered. My love for the area grows as I celebrate my one year anniversary here in five days. There are other reasons I’m here and I’ll share those in another blog, but for today I’m smiling at those treasured, magical memories.