{This beautiful photo is the prompt this week for Friday Fictioneers. To a Floridian like me, it looked like a scene from Disney, and with Disney World just recently announcing its re-opening later in the summer, a surge of nostalgia ensued. Hope you enjoy! Thanks for the prompt and for coming by to read! Stay safe out there!}
Belle gasped.
It was her first time.
Cheryl and Bob, the toddler’s parents, grinned knowingly above her flouncing curls. They were waiting at the musical fountain, holding her hands between them. Belle swung back and forth like a monkey, while music probed memories.
Hearing strings, Cheryl soared, cross-legged in purple pantaloons, high above Agrabah.
Piano chords had Bob swooping a green-and-white spaceman through the air.
And the chorals flitting past Gramma’s mouse ears seemed to sprinkle pixie dust. Just enough, to power her chase of a green-clad boy, through foggy London skies.
Gramma leaped up and pointed.
“Look!” she squealed. “Mickey!”
If you miss the joys of losing yourself in crowds, you may enjoy Invisible.
I’m afraid I’m not a Disney fan, so the references passed me by. It sounds like the family enjoyed their outing.
BTW – I’m very sorry but I messed up handling your comment on my story with WordPress and managed to lose it altogether. This was not a deliberate deletion – it was a screw-up! It was a helpful comment, because you highlighted the dialogue as being natural which is very useful constructive criticism – thank you!
No worries Penny. Misspeaking or talking over one another can be harder to write than regular dialog, so if you can do it convincingly, that’s saying something!
My idea was that each person in this family group, waiting for the parade to begin, had their own favorite Disney musical, and when the strains of that musical pumped through the ambient speakers, each was transported back to the experience they had with the movie in childhood. And the eldest of the bunch turned out to be the most enthusiastic of all.
That was definitely magical, Andrea! Brought me back to 2009, when we brought our boys…
Thank you Dale!
A delightful story which I enjoyed even more after reading a few of the comments that answered a question or two for me!
So glad to hear it Keith! Annotations can be very helpful sometimes when space is limited!
I can see little Belle excitedly swinging between them 🙂
That was the hardest bit to write! I kept tripping over my prepositions!
P.S. i’m guessing she will like the movie Jungle Book as she already appears to have something in common with “the king of the swingers” in the song “I want to be like you”. 😊
Fun story and took me back to my Californian Disney experience. 🙂
Susan A Eames at
Travel, Fiction and Photos
So glad you enjoyed it!
Dear Andrea,
Years ago when the boys were younger we took a cross country trip to Florida and Disney World. The night there was magic. Thanks for the memory.
Shalom,
Rochelle
Happy to be of service!
Such a happy story. Not being the least bit hep about current or recent Disney, I had no idea what Gramma or Agrabah were.
Gramma is a butchered version of Grandma, and Agrabah is the mythical kingdom in which Disney’s Aladdin movie takes place. It is a testament to the pervasive impact Disney has on Americans, at least, that I did not have to look up the name of the kingdom, only its spelling. 😊
The other dreamscapes refer to popular Disney movies from the time period in which each dreamer grew up. Mickey of course is Mickey mouse, the idea being that a person in a large Mickey costume is far down the avenue, just barely recognizable, at the head of the parade coming toward them.
In normal times at Disney World, they have a huge parade every night, with characters from throughout the ouevre throughout. It delights children of all ages. 🧚
A bit of Disney magic!
Yup! Thanks Iain.
So very, whimsical 🙂
Thanks justjoyfulness!
big, goofy grin of appreciation
A perfect reaction!
😀
I read Gramma as Grandma. You can see how that would have made it strange. Then I re-read
Hopefully whichever way you spell it, it makes more sense now. Re: the spelling, I can only say in my defense, that in the South it’s kind of a rule, that we not pronounce any more consonants than are absolutely necessary. 😊