Summer

And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. Super pumped that I am no longer a slave to sin and am being guided by the Lord throughout my journey in this life. It has indeed been a journey. Since I moved away from The Wilds in the mountains of North Carolina I have been on a high intensity adventure in Florida. It is amazing to see how God has used my past experiences and helped me to thrive here. God has had a hand in it all, and I am trusting Him with each twist and turn in this life adventure.

 

 

Since my last entry here I have started a new job at Walt Disney World! I was accepted into the Management Internship program where I am currently serving as a Housekeeping Manager at Disney’s Yacht & Beach Club Resorts. My official start date was June 11th, but I was able to physically start June 15th so that I could attend my brother’s high school graduation. Since starting work I have learned a lot about this new line of business. Entering housekeeping from a recreation role has been quite the culture shock. I am extremely pumped for this opportunity to learn another aspect of the operation here at Walt Disney World.

 

 

Moving from Disney’s Contemporary Resort to Disney’s Yacht & Beach Club Resorts is quite the change. Yacht & Beach is really three resorts in one. That’s a lot! You have the Yacht Club, Beach Club, and Beach Club Villas (a Disney Vacation Club Property). Our housekeeping department is in charge of all three of these buildings. That’s intense! I’ve been a part of this team for almost two months and have learned an extreme amount. I’ve learned a lot of big picture ideas and the minute details that help the operation run. Our cast is large, but each cast member has a personality unique to them and guides them in their work. Learning personal traits, likes and dislikes, and names is difficult, but it’s a positive, achievable challenge for me. I am ready to rock this management position and make waves (no pun intended)!

 

 

Part of my new leadership status requires I learn how to be a leader within The Walt Disney Company. A 7-week course (one day a week to equal seven days total) called Introduction to Operation Leadership (IOL) is the course leaders take at Disney University. We have been to two classes so far. These two classes have already taught me a lot about myself, leading in the company, and leading outside the company. Since our new Director is new to Disney, we are classmates at IOL. It’s cool, but also a little weird because we just discovered yesterday that we are more alike than we could have imagined. One example of our likeness is that we are both the same personality type according to Myers-Briggs.

 

 

Since mid-June I’ve not done anything super exciting other than work. The most exhilarating thing I did was have my family down during the 4th of July week. I worked most of the days they were here, but we still got to do fun stuff together. My family got a short tour of our resort, we watched 4th of July fireworks at Epcot, and we got to celebrate my brother’s birthday. First of all, the 4th of July fireworks at Epcot are amazing. If you haven’t done it, do it. Next year. ​

​ One of the highlights of the celebration that week was being able to stay at Disney’s Contemporary Resort for two nights. That was a birthday/graduation surprise for my brother (and my sister since she didn’t know either). We had the best view of Bay Lake and Magic Kingdom. Thursday of that week I had to work, so I surprised the whole family with a poolside cabana for half of the day. This cabana included comfortable chairs, complimentary drinks, a fan, TV, and a bluetooth speaker just to name a few things. I’m glad they got to enjoy their time. One of the coordinators there was very kind and even extended their time in the cabana by two hours!

 

 

Noah’s birthday celebration was truly a success. To top it all off, we got to eat at ‘Ohana for his birthday dinner. I love ‘Ohana, and now he does too! I was pumped to hear that Disney expanded their military discount tickets by adding one more day to the options (5-day hopper ticket which allows you to go to all theme parks in a day for five days). This was incredibly cheap so my brother and sister were able to take advantage of this especially while I was working. I am pleased to say that we were able to ride AVATAR: Flight of Passage at Disney’s Animal Kingdom multiple times. The cool part was being able to take advantage of the Extra Extra Magic Hours while staying at the Contemporary. I’ve now ridden the ride twelve times. Twelve! It is my favorite ride. Glad my family was able to be down here for the coolest America and brother birthday celebration. Happy 18th birthday, Noah!

 

 

I’ve not been to drill since coming back from Morocco, but I’ll be in Greenville again after a while.

 

 

Well, I guess that’s it for now. I am probably missing some fun activities that happened, but that’s okay. Now you’re a little more updated on my life than you were. Oh yeah, we were in a drought for while, but since the rainy season has started it has rained plenty. Thank you for taking some time and reading this thing. Lots going on, and more to come! I’ve got some extra news, but I’ll save that for the next update. God has been good to me. I don’t deserve it. Should you have any questions, please feel free to comment, text me, or shoot me an email. Until next time: Be strong. Love God. Love others.

 

 

 

 

 

rejoice.always