Meeting "The Little Mermaid"

 When you're a little girl you fall in love with a Disney Princess, She grows with you and you resonate with her more and more as the years go on. That princess for me is The Little Mermaid. Ariel has been huge part of my life as she goes by the flick of her own tail and is misunderstood by those around her. It wasn't until recently when I truly started to idolize who brought her to life. From Broadway to the big screen, Jodi Benson has truly made Ariel come to life for all. 

Months ago, I stumbled upon Jodi's book "Part of My World" on amazon. What a perfect opportunity for me to learn more about the making of "The Little Mermaid" along with learning about how she felt through her journey. When purchasing this book I had no idea how much of an impact it would have on me. She speaks of her journey through hard relationships, school, family struggles, her journey with her faith and her career. It really put a perspective that not everyones life is as perfect as it may seem. Though someone is famous, they are normal people just like you and me. 

One night, I was scrolling on instagram and came across a post stating Jodi Benson would be at the Philly FanExpo. I could not believe it. The timing was nothing shy of perfect! I bought tickets instantly and even opted in for a photo. When we arrived at the expo center a million thoughts were running through my head. How do I talk to a famous person? How do I stand out from the regular "I love you so much" fans? What if I black out? We stood in line with a bunch of other fans. People dressed in Ariel merchandise and some dressed as Ariel. (My daughter loved meeting all of the Ariels) We waited in line for roughly 30 minutes and then got guided being the tall black curtain and there she was! Under the photo lighting she stood tall, with long flowing hair and a welcoming smile. In roughly 30 seconds the shutter of the camera went off and we were passing through another black curtain to the back of the line to get our picture. Talk about disappointment. I was so excited to meet Jodi and tell her about the impact she has made through her book and how much I appreciate it, but instead I was being pushed through and it was onto the next fan. 

We headed upstairs to look around at the different vendor booths to see if we could find any fun things. After purchasing a small Ariel squishmellow for my daughter I decided it was time to leave. As I turned around to find the exit I spotted a giant sign that read "Celebrity Autographs" and I instantly headed that way. There were rows upon rows of names I recognized along with a names I wasn't sure of. Each banner hung high with a picture of the character and the actor's name. One by one I read the banners until I found the red headed mermaid I was looking for. Luckily the line was short and we made friends with another girl dressed as the young mermaid. Before you knew it, it was time to go up and talk to her. I brought her book along with me to sign and requested that we take another picture together. Jodi was truly as sweet as I had hoped. She was excited to talk to us and so sweet with my daughter. She signed my book and she walked around the long table to post with us for a picture taken on my phone. We said our thank you's and goodbyes but I knew I had more to say. As we parted ways I quickly turned around to share how appreciative I am of her. I remember saying how important her book is to me and how much it has inspired me to trust that God always has a plan. I shared that through my journey I found her book and found peace within her words. As I was speaking with her tears were welling up and I tried to hold them back. She reached out and hugged me and said "Thank you so much for sharing this with me". I proceeded to apologize for crying and she said "Crying is a normal human thing, it is okay". She smiled and we parted ways. 

I can truly say I will never forget the brief moment I got to spend with my Idol. It has been a real dream come true.