Day 917: Tough to Understand

At this rate I feel like a master planner of trips and once in a lifetime experiences...at least right now I do. I updated my countdown app the other day and I officially have 7 things on it, with everything from Disneyland to Disney World and the most recent addition, a Once Upon A Time convention next April. Oh yes, I've definitely been adament about my latest motto in life: Do Before You Die. I figure that I only have so much time left here in Wisconsin with my friends before I take off on new adventures, so I might as well make the most of it. And with so many experiences already booked, it means that it's time to look ahead to what might come AFTER all the current experiences finish.

But what defiitely throws a loop in things is a difficulty understanding how much some of this really means to me. Don't get me wrong, I've lived my entire life with people looking at me funny for loving Disney so much (and now OUAT is definitely in that same category), but I have my people, and those who DO understand me know that I'm not crazy at all. In fact, it's the rest of the world that's missing out.

Doesn't mean I'm not a little bit worried though.

I love and adore all of my friends. Trust me, I honestly do. But if you say you're going to Disney with Lizzie, that's what you're going to do. I don't do the rest of Florida. It's not "Go to the Beach with Lizzie" or "Go to Universal with Lizzie." No, it's "Go to Disney with Lizzie," and nothing beyond that. Sure, I'll make a HUGE exception to go to Universal for a day, but you can't act like I'm trying to persuade you not to go when I tell you it'll cost a lot more than you might think. And you also can't expect me to be all happy go lucky Lizzie when we head straight into my worst nightmare.

You see, even after how many years of living a life surrounded by Disney on all sides, and after two and a half years of blogging about it, I'm still faced with this one same problem: Those Who Don't Quite Understand. There's a certain mindset that hardcore Disney fans have, and it's one that, unfortunately, only we can understand. When Disney is threatened or our love of it is called out, we get defensive...very defensive, and that's a feeling that honestly I can't even explain. The let down when someone you love says you're too invested. When your friend tells you that you need to grow up. When someone calls you childish for loving Disney so much. We all face these struggles, and unfortunately it never gets easier.

We push on though. We find our friends within the fandom and we hold onto them for dear life, because no matter what, there's always going to be that one thing that ties us together: The Magic of Disney.

Have a magical day!