It was truly a magical moment. With days of happy faces, Mickey Mouse treats, and children topped with hats resembling Disney characters, we saw a rat. We were standing in the middle of Epcot’s Italy when all of a sudden a rat made a surprise appearance. I was reminded of some timeless life lessons from the rat at Disney World.
We had just left Alice in Wonderland and were approaching Mary Poppins. We were all captivated with memories of our childhood icons. Thomas must have starred at Mary Poppins for five minutes. I told him he looked like a stalker. He said, “I was trying to figure out why she doesn’t sweat.” Even with his left brain thinking, Thomas, like the rest of us, was in a magical mode.
No doubt, the presence of the rat made the magic of the moment disappear but for me the magic was just beginning. I was wondering how the Disney employees would handle the unwelcomed creature. Maybe one of the Disney villains would pop in and save the day. How about the evil queen in Snow White? She could take the rat out with just a few of her magic spell chants. What if Cinderella’s fairy Godmother waved her magic wand and with a simple “bibbity, bobbity, boo” turn the rat into an overweight coachman? At Disney, anything is possible.
Yes, in this perfectly controlled environment of happiness, there was the ugly reality of a nasty, dirty rat. Such is life.
We all want our lives to be a perfect story of princesses, handsome princes and justice being served. As we turn the pages of our lives we want it all to be a storybook filled with happiness and hero’s. Oh, my.
There will be those unexpected rats who try to destroy our dreams and take away our hopes. Rodent moments will invade our lives and we have the unwelcomed task of dealing with these nasty surprises.
Not to worry: many life lessons where reaffirmed as I watch how the Disney folks handled the situation:
1- “Please stay away from the rat,” said the Disney employee. When we recognize rats or ratty situations in life, we should try to avoid them at all cost.
2-There was a security guard present. The Disney folks were prepared to handle the rat and had the proper people in place for protection. Be prepared and protected when moments of ugly reality appear.
3-The Disney employees were un-phased by the interruption. They remained calm which made all of us remain calm. How we react to these situations is vital to how we proceed.
The best part is that we moved on….to another country and other interest. Yes, this is another tip on how to handle the rats. Rats will be who they are and many times we cannot stop the nastiness. The only thing we can control is to stay focused on the magic within our minds.
The expression at Disney is “where dreams come true.” As we go back to our homes and fantasy succumbs to reality, maybe a great way to look into the future is to ask yourself, “what dreams can I help come true for others?” If this is your focus then no army of rats can ever defeat our spirit of success and determination.
