I could smell the magic through the powerful fragrance of flowers, I could hear the birds sing “When You Wish Upon A Song” (a classic), whilst standing in the middle of a heavenly, magnificent garden at the prime of our world – Disneyland! Then, life hit me. I had to go back up to the resort! I was at the bottom of an elegant Disney resort my family and I were staying at, taking in this wonderful experience. Unfortunately, it was our last day in California, and our paradise was coming to an end. This day was yearning for adventure, and it’s wish had to be fulfilled. Excitement was coursing through my veins, and I could not wait any longer. As I started towards the resort, thinking about everything I have to do before our day of adventure starts, I didn’t quite feel like myself. I thought to myself: am I sick? What if the whole day is ruined because of me! Therefore, I put this thought into the back of my head, as if it never existed.

I glanced at the time and it was already nine o’clock in the morning and I hurried to the elevator and I rushed to our room and I got ready for the day – a pink skirt with a striped, flowery shirt and I put my hair into a french braid as stiff as a rock and my family and I ate our scrumptious breakfast! 

Since it was our last day, we had to gather everything and we were able to check out by noon. We hopped on the classic Disney tram, and we were on our way to the magic of the one and only, Disneyland! I literally could not wait. Despite the fact that we had been to several Disney and Universal Studios parks prior to today, we were especially delighted because we saved the best for last! Due to the fact that we had a late flight that night, we would be able to spend the day without worrying about missing our ride home. This feeling was absolutely perfect! I knew nothing could ruin this magical day, but I guess – I jinxed it…

From a distance from the park, I saw the Disney castle. It was absolutely breathtaking. I couldn’t contain my excitement, I just wanted to scream! Then, the tram came to a stop. It was time. We jumped off the tram, speed-walking towards the park, having our Mickey Mouse bands on our hands, ready to be scanned, and we kept on walking furiously until we reached. We waited in line eagerly, and in sight, the grand, superb Disney Castle glowed through my eyes while the petit ice cream truck had a line formed in front for their fantastic Mickey Mouse ice cream bars, and I thought of this as looking at two completely different drops of rain, running down a window. It was stunning.

The moment we stepped into the park, there it was – the rides! The magic of the park, the main feature of this completely different world, and the badge of fun. I didn’t know where we should start, until I heard the wonderful cars. “Vroom, vroom, vroom… ” The world was racing with excitement, similar to my family and I.  Furthermore, as we were walking towards the ride, Cinderella’s clumsy, careless, charming mice ran along the street filled with pixie dust! The sight of this situation made my family and I joyful, jovial, and jolly! 

When we arrived at the ride, the line was humongous! Despite the long wait, we stood in line due to the fact that we knew it was worth it! Bored, and running out of and low on patience, I thought to myself about how special Disney is to my family and I. Fun fact: my first vacation was at Disneyworld, a month after I was born. Disney holds a valuable spot in my family and my own hearts. We’ve literally been to every single Disney park in the world (Florida, California, Paris, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Tokyo), plus the Disney Cruise! It is beyond meaningful. 

“Mom, can I sit with you? I’m super excited for this speedy, princess car ride!” I cried.

“Of course mitha (sweetheart), however, there’s still a long way to go til’ the fun arrives!” My mom responded.

“Yay, although, I’m a tad scared.”

While we waited in line for the fabulous ride in the elegant, April weather, we simply reflected how amazing this day was, but before we knew it, it started raining.  

We all stared at one another in shock, not saying a word. We stood in silence waiting for someone to say anything while the rain increased by the second. Questions were racing through my mind: was everything going to be okay? What’s to come next? Will our day be ruined? 

“Don’t worry, kids. We’ll wait a little longer, but if the situation gets worse, we’ll have to leave.” My mom responded in disappointment, however, it sounded more like she was convincing herself. 

As we were still waiting in the continuous perished line for the ride, I noticed that people were leaving the line super fast as if there was a zombie apocalypse, the tightening in my chest was indescribable, and then the horrid truth of life came back – I felt terrible. Just terrible. 

The wind was screeching in my ears, the rain was pounding as hard as my heartbeat, and the floor was as wet as the ocean. I knew in my heart that something terrible is going to happen. With my luck, a storm came following me, but something else didn’t feel right. I felt a little queasy. The feeling from this morning had come back from the dead, or visible. In addition to this, it was getting harder, and harder to see. Due to the grave barrier in our sight, we could see nothing. The sound of Tony Stark came to mind from the highest-grossing film in the world: “Avengers Endgame” to remind me of this torture, “Zero, zip, nada.” While praying, our last glimmer of hope to the gates of freedom resided on the flow of the crowd. We were simply helpless. 

All we could do was pray. My family and I prayed. We prayed, hoping for a rainbow to appear over the unique Disney Castle, we prayed that this day would magically become perfect again, we prayed that we would make it home safely – or just out of the park, we just Prayed.

While there was nothing in sight, I kept worrying – the entire park was getting evacuated in seconds and I didn’t know what was to come next and I had doubts about the probability of our survival and I couldn’t see anything and I didn’t know what we’d do after we were free from this dungeon and I don’t know how much my sickness has deteriorated! In addition, while walking towards our freedom, I continued to think to myself: how could something so good become so bad in a snap? It was a frightening question, and the answer was not known to me. I was scared. I was scared that we wouldn’t get out of here, I was scared about the chances of our survival, I was worried about my sickness, and I was worried about my family. Was everything going to be okay?

The stress just made the situation worse, and my stomach was raging. Then I noticed that my dad was squinting at me abnormally.

“Fariha, are you alright? You’re shivering! Your face… it’s swollen and red.” My dad questioned in shock. 

Quickly, I rushed to retrieve my phone, navigating to my camera, worried about what’s wrong with me. I saw it. My face was as red as a tomato. 

I realized that I shouldn’t have ignored this feeling. What if this life-threatening situation triggered this disease? What if I could’ve prevented this if I called out my sickness in the morning? How serious was this disease? 

I couldn’t stand any more questions roaming through my head, therefore, I kept on with my journey, and it felt like hours, but at last, we arrived at the gates of freedom, free from our prison. The day went from heavenly and magical to tortuous and evil. Frankly, I didn’t think it was possible for things to turn upside down so rapidly. Well, while standing in the empty, drenched parking lot, I realized that we still had to get to the airport, my face looked like it had exploded, and we had nowhere to go. Although, in the end, everything worked out fine, though the struggle was tragic. I guess, despite all the happiness and joy in the light, there is despair in the shadows. Despair.