Blog Prompt 2--The Trouble with 'Most'

2. The person I admire most:

I have been thinking about this prompt for about three days now and have struggled over the word 'most'. I admire a lot of people for a lot of reasons, but picking one who's more admirable than the others? I'm not sure I can do it. So, I don't plan to. Instead, I'm turning to my tattoo.

As most of you know, 'Dream Wish Believe' are words I live by, but people I admire are honored in the lettering, as well. While it doesn't give credit to everyone I admire, it gives me a focal point for the purpose of this blog. Rather than rambling for days about every single person I look up to, I'll just focus on the boldest of all in my tattoo.

'D' is for Disney. I have never been able to aptly put into words how much Walt Disney means to me and how much his work has affected my life. So rather than try, I am going to use the words of two others in order to convey my feelings about him.

The first was said by Eric Sevareid on the CBS Evening News after Walt Disney passed away:

It would take more time than anybody has around the daily news shops to think of the right thing to say about Walt Disney. 

He probably did more to heal or at least to soothe troubled human spirits than all the psychiatrists in the world. There can't be many adults in the allegedly civilized parts of the globe who did not inhabit Disney's mind and imagination at least for a few hours and feel better for the visitation. 

...What Walt Disney seemed to know was that while there is very little grown-up in a child, there is a lot of child in every grown-up. To a child this weary world is brand new, gift wrapped; Disney tried to keep it that way for adults.... 

By the conventional wisdom, mighty mice, flying elephants, Snow White and Happy, Grumpy, Sneezy and Dopey--all these were fantasy, escapism from reality. It's a question of whether they are any less real, any more fantastic than intercontinental missiles, poisoned air, defoliated forests, and scraps from the moon. This is the age of fantasy, however you look at it, but Disney's fantasy wasn't lethal.

The second could be heard spoken by Julie Andrews in the opening lines of the Disneyland 50th Anniversary fireworks show, Remember, Dreams Come True:

Once upon a time, there was a magic kingdom, made of hopes and childhood fantasies. A timeless place where every land was filled with wonder. A place where everyone who entered its gates would be given the gift of the young at heart, the power to wish upon a star and unlock its magic....

 In 1955, an amazing man named Walt Disney dreamt of a magic kingdom. [He said in his grand opening speech:]  "To all who come to this happy place: welcome. Disneyland is your land. Here, age relives fond memories of the past. And here youth can savor the challenge and promise of the future. Disneyland is dedicated to the ideals, the dreams and the hard facts that have created America, with the hope that it will be a source of joy and inspiration to all the world....

Fifty years later, Walt Disney's Magic Kingdom has grown to become the Happiest Place on Earth to millions the world over. A place where anything is possible, where every dreamer may wish upon a star.

 His work is the basis for my personal belief system and has an effect on every decision I make--whether I realize it or not. Disney, quite frankly, has had an astounding influence on the person I've become and I am incredibly thankful for that.