A Disneyland Day In A Life

Family gathering 2002

There's a small outcropping of rocks in Frontierland that circle a tree and a flagpole and separates Frontierland from Adventureland. Savvy Disneyland veterans are quite familiar with the spot especially since it is conveniently located in the midst of some prime shopping areas and some of the most heavily utilized restrooms in the park. The two pictures here are separated by about 7 years. Sometimes 7 years seems like a lifetime and in the case if these two pictures, it was.

Family remembrance 2009

My sister Joyce (seated in the middle of the family shot at the top of this post) with the jeans and short hair never lived long enough to make it to Disneyland with her family again, dying from a massive stroke in 2006. She was kept alive on life support but the she not only lost her Disneyland memories, she lost all memory of those she loved and cared for so deeply. "To everything there is a season...and a time for every purpose under heaven."

But even though my sister passed away at a far too early age, her life was never without purpose. This isn't a story about sadness, being maudlin, or an attempt at some redemption of pity. For this is a story of joy. My sister loved her family; both immediate and extended as her mother did before her. They meant everything to her and on this trip to Disneyland, there were no exceptions (except for the time she got lost from the group and began to cry).

On this trip to Disneyland, she did everything possible to keep a group of about 14 people together - no easy task when there are probably at least a dozen different agendas. She picked up the tab for lunches or dinners at the Blue Bayou and Rainforest Cafe but most of all, she was there when people needed her, which is what she did best.

I walked in with her to see The Enchanted Tiki Room, Billy Hill and the Hillbillies, Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, and Aladdin. And that is why it pisses me off to no end that Disney has decided to remove a show like Billy Hill. "I saw that show with my sister Jack! I will never get to do that again and you want to take that memory away and make some kind of change that I am sure is designed to turn a another Disney revenue stream?."

Whatever Disney does in the future, please respect the past. The personal investment in people's lives that matter is just too great for monetary profit.