I'm 20 years old, and I am a shameless Disney fan. I was born and raised with Disney. Growing up, I had all the Disney princess costumes, I was inseparable from by Winnie the Pooh stuffed animal, and I dreamed that one day I could fly just like Peter Pan. My family had every Disney movie known to man on VCR, and I knew every catchy song by heart. Growing up in California, the annual trip to Disneyland was a must, and meeting all of my beloved characters was always the top of my to-do list.

Middle school came and I seemed to have grown up and out of my Disney phase. I was over it, too cool for Disney, I suppose. I sort of got back into it in high school, but I seemed to have lost my intense passion for Disney back from my childhood days. Then, college happened.

I don't know what it is about college that seems to make every girl (and some guys!) turn back into Disney fanatics again. Maybe it has something to do with living in the dorms. I mean, having a year long sleepover with some of your best friends that are all living right on your hallway is bound to result in a midnight karaoke session of, "Lets's Get Down to Business" (to defeat the Huns!) right? Late night movie marathons always included a few of our favorite animated classics (I mean who could ever turn down a chance to watch "Hercules"). In fact, most girls that I have come close to in my college years have all had the same level of Disney enthusiasm that I do! But why now?

Here's my personal hypothesis: College is stressful as hell, and Disney makes it all a little bit better.

Why? Well, here's the thing. College is one big wave of stress and uncertainty that is constantly shoving its way into your face. We are asked to make huge life altering decisions about our careers, figure out what kind of person we want to be, and try to face an uncertain job market with all the hope and optimism that we can muster. Oh, and most of us still haven't figured out how to do our taxes yet.

Disney makes it OK to be a kid, again. It creates a safe space to let go of our stresses for an hour and indulge in our childhood for a while. It's not running away from reality per se, its just taking a little bit of a break. So as a college student, and soon to be adult in the real world, I am proud to be a Disney nerd. Disney allows us to reconnect with the child that still lives in our hearts and for that I say you are never too old for Disney.