Last week, my family spent five days at Disney World, coinciding with Care Net’s National Conference at Disney’s Swan & Dolphin Resort. I stuck my head in to visit with friends at the conference, but because this was our last full week together before my fall travel season begins, we spent most of our time at the parks.
My favorite park is Disney’s Hollywood Studios, where movies come to life such as in the Frozen show and in the Star Wars area. For some reason, just the atmosphere of the park is plenty for me. I could walk the park and never go on a ride, and leave at the end of the day, perfectly content.
My 7-year-old son, Jake, must have the same impression, because his favorite “ride” is not a ride at all; it is the Walt Disney museum, “One Man’s Dream.” Inside are original drawings for Disneyland, a camera from the show, “The Wonderful World of Disney,” Walt’s old desk and so much more. It’s a journey through Walt Disney’s life, and the capper for both Jake and me is the 20-minute movie of Walt’s life.
What we like best is that one man had a dream, to create a park where parents and children could enjoy wholesome entertainment together. Through bankruptcies and setbacks, Mr. Disney continued to pursue that dream until Disneyland was born.
[Click here to subscribe to Pregnancy Help News!]
But instead of resting on his laurels and success, Walt Disney saw something bigger in Disney World and EPCOT. Today of course, there are four parks, a gazillion hotels and various other adventures all within 15 minutes or so of each other.
While the Disney brand has sometimes forgotten this path, overall the parks are still a place where dads, moms, sons and daughters can all enjoy a day and live in a fantasy/reality of fun.
The fascination for me is that for Walt, he never stopped dreaming. He didn’t live to see the opening of Disney World, but he was there in the planning stages and saw it with his mind’s eye.
His life is a testament to what can happen when one man or woman has a dream and refuses to let go.
You. Me. We have dreams, too.
As I look at our pregnancy help organizations, from life-affirming centers and medical clinics to maternity homes and adoption agencies, we have a shared dream.
Tweet This: Our dream is a world where children are wanted because we're better *wanters* @KirkWalden #prolife
The dream is actually so much larger than ending abortion, though that is an amazing dream in itself. Our dream, friends, is a world where abortion is not just ended, but is unthinkable—a world where life is celebrated and cherished.
It’s a world where every child is a wanted child because we became better wanters, where those who conclude now is not “the right time” for a child in their own lives embrace adoption as an opportunity to grow in selflessness and courage.
During a phone call with a director earlier this week, we talked about how so many of our clients and patients come to us thinking they want the morning-after pill, a surgical abortion or some way out of an unplanned pregnancy. Deep down, they are looking for a solution that centers on a hope.
[Click here to subscribe to Pregnancy Help News!]
Our dream is that hope lives and that hope grows through our work. While our mission does not involve theme parks, rides and hotels, one day we will see our completed dream just as clearly as those involved with Disneyland and Disney World.
Regardless of what we see today, let’s keep dreaming. We never know when dreams will come true.
Kirk Walden is a senior writer with Pregnancy Help News, an Advancement Specialist with Heartbeat International and author of The Wall. He also blogs at www.kirkwalden.com. For banquet speaking engagements,
