Adventure Is (Still) Out There!
Hello there, followers! Haven't heard from me on the blog in a while, huh? Well, my previous Disney College Program was such a good experience. I've gone on and on about the great people I met in Florida, but it's true: I met amazing people there. Some have gone on to become really close friends. In fact, after the program was over, some of those friends invited me to go to Disneyland with them! It was such a blast, waking up at 2am so we could drive the 6 hours and be at Disneyland for the 8am opening. We stayed in the park at least until midnight that night. Disneyland itself is just fantastic, too. When you make a trip like that, your friends become as close as family.
These friends convinced me way back before the end of the program that we should all do another DCP in Fall 2014. I was hesitant at first, positive my parents would nix that idea. They're very supportive of my endeavors, but I was sure a second romp at Disney would not go over well. When I brought it up to them, they were surprisingly cool about it. You would be too if you're son's internship netted you free tickets to Disney and discounts galore! (Love you, mom and dad!)
So we waited. And waited. Finally, just a month ago, applications for the Fall 2014 program came out - our group were among the first to submit the applications, of course! Things proceeded quickly, the web-based interview and the phone interview, just as before.
Waiting. It's all about waiting. About a week went by, and I was sitting in class on a Friday, just about to head out and go to work. Before logging out of the computer, I clicked over to email. There it was. My acceptance email! I had to scurry off, but I was beaming inside!
I was definitely excited, but it was a different type of excitement than the first time. I experienced the parks and most of the resorts, nearly every attraction and show. I kind of knew what to expect, the check-in process and Traditions and training. I would be back in Disney, and that's where I love being, but still the excitement was different, lower key.
I joined several Facebook groups for Fall 2014 participants. Two for all participants. One for Christians. One for attractions cast members - which I will soon be one of.
The "thing to do" once you are accepted is to fill out a roommate survey and post it in the Facebook group. This way other participants can "shop around" for roommates and get to know people. Saying "Eh, why not?", I grabbed a survey, filled it out, and posted it to the group.
The next day I got a Facebook message, and things really took off. By the end of the day I had three roommates, great guys and all first time participants. You know what else I found? My previous excitement had returned! My future roommates were asking me questions about my experience, and reliving that adventure and seeing it through their eyes really brought back the excitement I felt the first time around!
And there you have it. By the beginning of June all the way until January I'll be an attractions cast member somewhere in the Walt Disney World Resort. There's so much I'm looking forward to: meeting my roommates and other folks I haven't yet met, seeing friends again, experiencing brand new attractions (Festival of Fantasy and Seven Dwarves Mine Train! Eeep!), learning the ins and outs of working an attraction, taking lots and lots of pictures. Most of all, I look forward to seeing what God does during this program. He brought about great changes in me last time - several people, when I got back, commented that I was different in a good way. I know He will pull through this time, too.
And now, we wait. As I said, it's all about the waiting.
