Walking towards the resort room on the other side of the lake at Coronado Springs. 

As I walked towards my room tonight, after a full day of airplane travel, I was struck by the stillness of the water & the beautiful vegetation at the Disney Coronado Springs resort. This place has a cool vibe for me anyway with the Mayan temples & Mexican aesthetic. Given that the little one is obsessed with Disney Pixar’s “Coco,” lately, it’s kind of great. I’m excited to see how he reacts to everything when he arrives. He keeps me in touch with my inner child, despite work meetings & a number of deliverables due this week.

A weird juxtaposition of work & childhood, but I’m very grateful to have this opportunity & to be able to share it with so many great people.

Reminiscent of our trip to the Yucatan. 

The plane trip allowed me a chance to watch “Bohemian Rhapsody” & “Can You Ever Forgive Me?”–both nominated for a number of awards, & I can see why. This gave me a chance to discuss with colleagues on trams & in queues something more than run-of-the-mill smalltalk. I enjoy films, especially biopics about creative people, so I felt struck by the personal challenges both Freddie Mercury & Lee Israel faced. Maybe that’s the price of creativity, of seeing the world so differently?

When you stand out from the masses, you run the risk of feeling very alone. Both figures describe this… That pain of feeling very alone at the core, despite having people present who love them.

More of the landscaping. 

Lovely greenery. 

These are the things streaming through my mind, as I stroll down the paths to my room, taking in the beauty of the grounds & climate. (Wow, it’s much more humid back in the Eastern board. Utah is way drier, which does make a big difference in a number of ways when you’re traveling.) As you age, you realize that certain feelings just ARE. You can’t make them go away; you can only learn how to use those feelings in ways that are less destructive & more creative.

But that begets risk, & thus a cycle begins.

Another Vista along the boardwalk. 

This brings me back to “Saving Mr. Banks,” & the depiction of Walt Disney as I near my room. Disney & his difficult experiences when quite young with his father, experiences that prevented him from feeling much of the carefree happiness of childhood. He created a kind of utopia, as my former colleague Priscilla would say, the “happiest place on earth.” Gosh, even Tom Brady fresh off of his 6th superbowl win tweeted from Walt Disney World, earlier today. There’s still that magic of happiness that adults chase.

But I guess that’s enough for my tired brain. A happy Mickey Mouse made of towels greets me at the room, with pretty furnishings & a view. And I’m reminded, once again, of how lucky I am to be here. Gratitude fills my heart.

The lovely room with spa-related toiletries, crisp sheets & thick towels provide much-appreciated respite for this tired introvert. 

A room with a view.