Cinderella was my favourite princess
Did you ever believe you were a princess when you were little? Not just Daddy’s little princess, a Disney princess. I wanted to be Cinderella for as long as I can remember. I hoped to be one of the princess actresses at Disney World and make all the children’s dreams come true. Even though I didn’t know if it would happen, I believed it would. For years.
Cinderella is still my favourite, 30 years later
30 + years later and I was still holding onto that dream when we took the kids to Disney World. This was my chance to create the reality I had always believed in. I was going to be Cinderella on my birthday. So, I bought matching Cinderella costumes for my daughter Eva and I to wear in the park.
My family had a birthday lunch date booked at Cinderella’s castle and we were ready. We set out for the park—Eva and I looking flawless in our matching blue dresses. It was going to be the perfect birthday—my last one before I turned 40.
I accidentally broke the Disney World rules…
When we got to the gates, kids swarmed me and asked to take my picture. And we weren’t even inside the park yet! I had gone all out and really did look like a genuine princess. They thought I was the real Cinderella! The security guards quickly pulled me aside and told me that it was against park rules for adults to dress up as one of the characters.
Oops!
Thankfully, they didn’t kick me out of the park. Instead, they gave me a voucher to get new clothes in the gift shop that I could wear for the day.
I had to change my perspective
I was devastated. I had believed this day would come for so long and now that it was finally here, I felt it slipping away before it even started. Instead of letting it ruin my entire day though, I made a choice. As I stood in that security booth where I could just see Cinderella’s castle peeking out behind the trees, I closed my eyes and smiled. This was my moment—my silly little childhood dream came true—I was standing inside Disney World as Cinderella.
I decided I was going to savour that brief minute before going to the gift shop. This bump wasn’t going to ruin my day and instead I learned an important lesson about belief.
1 – Believe for as long as it takes
Sometimes your dream will take a while to happen. Keep believing and finding opportunities to pursue that dream. When I wanted to be Cinderella, I didn’t necessarily go looking for jobs at Disney World (although I could have if I wanted to and some dreams are worth pursuing wholeheartedly!). I just believed that it would be cool if this happened one day. When we finally took the kids to Disney World, I knew it was my chance and I took it. I saw the opportunity as it came to me.
I could have given up on the dream years ago but deep down inside it had always lived on.
2 – Be open to the unexpected
Being too focused on one expectation of how my dream would play out might have made me miss the moment completely. If I had been focused on getting inside Cinderella’s castle, I wouldn’t have noticed the quiet moment before I was required to get changed. I saw the chance to enjoy my Cinderella dress in Disney World before I had to step out of it—so I took it.
Yes, it wasn’t at all what I expected but it was still a piece of my dream and I was willing to take what I could get! Your dream might unfold differently than you expect, so be flexible to welcome the unexpected into your life.
3 – Believe that your dreams are worth it
If you’ve spent years believing and working for something and it hasn’t happened yet, you’re likely feeling discouraged. Maybe you’re even wondering whether or not your dream is worth having. If you start to question yourself, recognize the thought for what it is: a moment of doubt.
Don’t let doubt rob you of your dream.
If you really, truly believe in that dream, then it is worth it for you. Your dream is your dream!
New opportunities to believe
Getting to be Cinderella for 5 minutes was still a win for me.
It may seem like a silly dream to hold onto for so long but it was worth it to me.
Some dreams will be life changing and others will just be fun memories you make. Both are important to believe in as you keep connecting to a life that you love.
So, look for the opportunities around you to dream and believe. There will be new ones you’ll notice and you can choose which ones you’ll pursue.
Connect the Dots
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