Tuesday Nostalgia

Because, why not?

The Lion King came through town a few weeks ago, which I suppose is why I've been a bit nostalgic ever since about all things Disney. When people ask what my favorite Disney movie is (to be clear, no one ever asks me this), I say The Little Mermaid. It probably has more to do with my age at the time the movie came out, but I'm pretty convinced there is a rather large contingent of women out there who hold Ariel and her underwater posse close to their hearts.

I always thought it was just me and was almost embarrassed that I had latched onto the movie so, but at a church camp one summer years later (a girls camp), I learned I was not alone in my obsession. Being a church camp, the camp leaders had put together a little book of songs that were approved for us to sing en masse while we sat in the lodge and waited for our tables to be dismissed for dinner. (Because certainly the worst possible thing that could have happened that week while caring for hundreds of teenage girls would have been inappropriate song lyrics. The horror.)

Anyway, one evening as we sat waiting for dinner, someone started singing Part of Your World, which, incidentally, was not in the song book. A few more joined in, then a whole table, and in a moment that was as solidaritous as it was amazing, pretty soon the entire lodge was singing this song. We knew it by heart. Every single one of us. And it wasn't just that we knew it, it's that we were into it. Think about it: here's a story about a girl who risks everything for a chance (and not a good one) to have what she wants most. That kind of gumption is not just admirable, it's inspirational. It's empowering. So imagine a campful of teenagers all wanting something more than they currently have, whether freedom or opportunity or circumstances. Imagine letting them loose with this song. Not sure I've ever seen such passion in all my life. Thank you, Disney. And thank you, Jodi Benson. For giving us a voice, then and now.