Change is Inevitable
Not all lessons from Disney World are easily learned. I’m a traditionalist; I never want things to change. Walt Disney, on the other hand, never intended for any of his theme parks to stagnate. He believed in changing, growing, and introducing new technologies that could enhance guests’ experiences.
I haven’t always liked the changes. I still mourn the loss of Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride at the Magic Kingdom (though perhaps not as much as my friend Elyse). I miss Horizons and World of Motion at EPCOT. I preferred the Walter Cronkite-narrated version of Spaceship Earth to…well, anything that’s come since. As for the original Journey Into Imagination compared to the current Journey Into Your Imagination, oh, don’t get me started on that one.
Sometimes, though, the changes have been good. I hated Magic Journeys, the 3-D movie in the Imagination pavilion at EPCOT. I blame that on the scary witch, and my overactive five-year-old imagination. The movie was replaced with Captain EO, launching a long love affair with 3-D sci-fi musicals starring Michael Jackson. On my last visit to EPCOT, I rode the new version of El Rio de Tiempo in the Mexico pavilion, and it was a cute and much-needed update to the old ride.
Life is the same way. Change happens, whether we want it to or not. Sometimes the changes are ones we like, and sometimes they aren’t. You have to make the best of it and, no matter what, keep Walt Disney’s words in mind: “Keep moving forward!”