July 17 just happens to be the anniversary of the opening of Disneyland in 1955. While I didn’t go on opening day, I did attend during the first month and several times a year from then until 1962 when I married and moved to Northern California which reduced my visitations to once a year for the next 20 years. Since that time, I’ve been in Washington and haven’t been able to return for a much longer time.
There are many stories to tell about Tom Sawyer’s Island. Just ask any California female of my age group about the times when all you needed was one admission and one cheap ride ticket to get to the dating service at Merry Go Round Rock. In changes to the island, the rock was removed about 20 years ago for safety reasons. Before then, the visiting servicemen from nearby installations knew you could find a girl sitting on the rock for a one day date and a kiss good night. Talk about a more innocent age.
One of my fondest adventures happened nearer the entrance. Now normally I wouldn’t recommend dating outside of ones species, but I must confess that because of Disneyland, one very pleasant evening was spent romancing a deciduous growth. As you can see from the photograph above, he was a rather handsome tree.
In 1961 Disney had just released Babes In Toyland. To promote this event, the space just to the right of the entrance was given over to a walk through exhibit of the scenes of the movie with music. My girlfriend and I skipped this until the end of the day and thought we would make it the last stop. Once walking through the scenery and since we had been on our feet all day, it seemed like a good idea to sit on the low wall at the exit area until heading for the car. Leaning back against the very stationary forest also seemed wise until the tree said, “Please don’t lean on me”. Once the leaping up in startled surprise and shrieking stopped, I apologized for getting too familiar with his trunk.
My tree and his leafy friend indicated they were about to get off work and would we stick around for a while until they changed. Now until you have found yourself gazing into the eyes of a forest growth asking you for a date, you haven’t quite exposed yourself to all that life has to offer. It was a pleasant one time evening due to geographic undesirability, but a pleasant memory.
Happy Anniversary to the Happiest Place On Earth
