You ever hear the melody of an old, familiar tune and it instantly takes you to a specific place? What about hearing a certain quote or poem that automatically floods your mind with memories so distinct they feel as though they just happened five minutes ago? For example, click the video below.

If you’re like me, you now want to stand up and twirl around, imagining yourself in the fantasies that Mr. Walt Disney dreamed up once upon a time. And guys, don’t tell me that Disney is only for girls. What Walt Disney created, starting back in 1928, was a world for people to escape to. No matter who you are, where you come from, gender, race, age, you can escape to the mindset of the picture Disney paints. A place where your soul instantly calms, where laughter solves the biggest problems, and no dream is considered too big.

This place…this place is a place in my imagination that I quickly retreat to when my memory wants to believe in something greater. Sometimes with a song. Sometimes with a quote. Other times in a simple moment that I experienced just last week. I was visiting New York City for the first time in my twenty six years and the subway took me into Times Square. As I walked up the stairs the immensity of it all swallowed me up as I felt like I was in a dream. I began to walk, following my family in front of me, looking everywhere except at my feet. Suddenly, my family had stopped and were all turned around looking in my direction. A questioned expression fell across my face and they all grinned. I followed their eyes upward as I saw the biggest Disney Store my eyes had ever seen. A slow smile started in my dimple (yes I only have one!) and worked its way up to my eyes. I walked in the front doors and was engulfed in this feeling I’ve been describing. Every character ever created welcomed me as their silhouettes lined the walls. Riding the escalator to the second floor, tiny wooden sculptures emerged from the walls as paper lanterns hung above. At the top, a huge chandelier lit up every princess dress imaginable as dozens of young girls pretended they too were princesses. If you closed your eyes, just for a moment, you could even see a twinkle of pixie dust floating through the air.

So do it..…close your eyes.

Let your imagination take you there. Whether you’re eight or eighty eight, you’re never too old. If you work in an office, take a moment and go there. If you teach, maybe it’s time to take your students there. If you stay at home, working for your family, stop for a moment and breathe, going to this place. Allow your mind to wander. Don’t think about bills to pay or work to do, just think about a time in your life where you believed in something greater, when you put your trust in magic and always have a little faith no matter the circumstances. Let those memories overflow in your mind until you remember what it feels like to love.

What it feels like to dream.

What it feels like.....to believe.