I’ve been going to Disney my whole life, but there was always one thing I avoided: the big drop ride in Magic Kingdom. Some people remember it as Splash Mountain, and now it’s been reimagined as Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. New storyline, new magic, same giant drop I spent years pretending didn’t scare me. As a kid, everyone else would run toward it, and I’d hang back on the sidelines, trying to act like it didn’t bother me.
This fear followed me into adulthood. Quiet, silly, but so real.
This past August, we were in Magic Kingdom, and the boys were over the moon about Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. They kept saying, “Mom, we’re all riding it together!” And even though I wanted to be brave, that familiar pit in my stomach came right back.
I almost walked away again. Last year, I did.
But when I looked at their faces — the excitement, the trust — the thought of letting them down felt worse than the fear.
So I said yes.
Even sitting in the log, I was scared.
Even during that slow, slow climb, my nine-year-old was saying, “Oh my gosh… we’re almost at the top!”
And right then, in my head, I heard Princess Tiana’s famous line from the movie, “I’m almost there.“
At the time, it was just a proud mom moment, something small and something I didn’t think much about.
But months later, when life got hard in a completely different way, this moment unexpectedly resurfaced in my mind. It became an inspiring Disney story for me. One I didn’t realize was teaching me something until much later.
Because now, looking back, that ride feels different.
Not because the drop changed… but because I did.
It’s funny how life gives you tiny previews of strength before you understand why you’ll need them. I thought I was riding it just for my sons, but now I see it was a quiet lesson in courage long before this harder season arrived.
This has become my Disney courage story and it showed me that fear isn’t always a sign to stop. Sometimes it’s simply a sign that you’re alive.
After the drop, we grabbed warm beignets — soft, sweet, comforting — and I remember thinking:
“The reward for being brave was worth it… but what’s sweeter is what happens inside of you when you take the plunge.”
Months later, when we stepped into a much more difficult chapter, that memory came back like a whisper. It reminded me that courage isn’t always loud. It isn’t always confident. Sometimes it’s shaky and quiet and done simply out of love.
And maybe that’s why Tiana’s story means something to me now. The grit, the dreams, the almost there feeling even when the climb is slow and you’re not sure what’s waiting at the top.
Because that’s where we are.
Almost through the hardest part.
Almost to the relief.
Almost to the next chapter.
And the next time we go back to Magic Kingdom?
I won’t hesitate.
I’ll be right there with them — hands up, heart open, ready for the drop.
Thanks for being here. Keep it Real.
If you’d like to read more reflections and moments like this, you can find them here.