WHAT GOOD IS MONEY WITHOUT DISNEYLAND?  Read PDF Version

People young and old have for decades enjoyed the magic of Walt Disney, a visionary leader who saw the future need to provide a place where people from all over the world could “get away from it all” to enjoy a day of family fun, happiness, and fantasy, to recharge and rejuvenate our soul.

People from many countries, cultures, and income groups, could go to get away from the stress of the daily grind and the monotony of the “real” life.

I think I have enjoyed Disneyland more than my children, as I looked forward to the greasy corn dogs from Main Street, the dole whip from Adventureland, and the Mickey Mouse beignets from New Orleans Square. Hey don’t criticize, it’s just once a year!

And whether you’re a working professional earning $75,000 a year or $750,000 (yes, some LinkedIn members earn $750,000+), we all enjoy Disneyland just the same. And you may be may be saying, what good is money when you can’t even go to Disneyland?

I dream I am reading an official announcement from the CDC where they tell us, “The Coronavirus is gone. It has left us just as mysteriously as it arrived”. And then I see myself in this dream, being asked by a friend, “What are you going to do now John, now that Coronavirus is gone?”

And I give the obvious answer, “I’m going to Disneyland!”.

But in reality, you may be wondering, what is life really going to be like when we “wake up” from this Coronavirus nightmare?

Will I ever get back to my normal life where I can even go to a restaurant to enjoy food and drink with my friends and family? If I do go to a restaurant, will I have to wear a mask and be told to sit far apart from my loved ones?

There is no doubt that Coronavirus may have forever changed the way we live in America and throughout the world.

So as we sit here reading and writing and connecting professionally on social media, we also seek to encourage each other and destress from the apparent unstoppable risks to our health.

We all need to see the light at the end of the tunnel (hopefully it’s not a train, right?)

We’re all just people, fragile humans who need love and just want to live happy lives with our friends, family, and our community.

Right now you may be at home working on your computer, or if you put your mask on, you’re out on the town trying to pretend that it is life as usual. You know, the “normal” life we all were enjoying (or complaining about) just a few months ago is far from restored to our communities.

But we must, at a minimum, persevere, and at best, thrive in the life we are all blessed to have, even if it s under the threat of this enemy virus.

Let us continue to connect with each other. Actually, why not widen out? Why not connect with new people? People of different countries, cultures, and even of different income groups, we all have interesting stories to share, and we share more in common with the 7 billion people on our “small world” than we may realize.

Do you think a LinkedIn member who makes a $750,000 salary is not feeling the pain as those whose salary is closer to the $75,000 end of the income spectrum? Of course they are. And even their high six-figure salary will not get them into Disneyland.

We’re all tired of this virus. We’re all hurting. And we’re all in this together.

And although it may be some time before we can go back and visit Disneyland, at least we can have one more thing to look forward to when life begins to return to normal.

I for one thank Walter E. Disney for having the vision to create a theme park that we can all look forward to visiting for respite from the real life we’re living.

Now, get ready. Practice how you’ll answer when you’re asked, “hey Suzy, what are you going to do now that Coronavirus is over?”

I’m going to Disneyland!