Is This Real Life, or Maybe Fantasy?

“Maybe this is the fantasy, and the parks are the reality, because that’s where people become their truest selves.”

There’s something quietly powerful about people who let their curiosity lead them somewhere new. When I sat down with James Warda, what really stood out, aside from the Disney magic woven through his stories, were the number of examples he was able to recall where the transformation began with a spark of curiosity followed by a single, brave choice to embrace it.

I’ve always been drawn to people who see wonder in the world around them. Maybe it’s my years working at Walt Disney World, or maybe it’s that same spark I see in my kids when they’re wide-eyed in discovery. But James reminded me that the purest kind of wonder isn’t reserved for the parks. It’s in every moment we allow ourselves to be fully present and open to change.

He shared stories of people who rediscovered purpose through joy: a child who spoke again because of one cast member’s kindness, a father who rebuilt his life after loss, a man who dressed as Walt to bring smiles to strangers. None of them set out to transform others; they simply followed what felt authentic, and transformation followed.

That’s the secret, isn’t it? We spend so much of our lives chasing achievement, when what we’re really craving is connection. The kind of moments that remind us who we are when the world gets quiet. Wonder has a way of breaking through the noise.

Think about the last time something simple made you pause. It may have been over a laugh, a view, or a memory. Did you let yourself stay there for a moment, or rush back to what’s “important”? What might shift if you allowed yourself to follow that spark a little longer?

Curiosity doesn’t demand a plan; it just asks that you pay attention. Follow what feels real, even if you don’t know where it leads. That’s how transformation begins. It not with control, and instead with trust that the story unfolding might just be the one you were meant to live.