Saturday, June 23, 2012

Is he real?

Yesterday, I was taking pictures for Goofy when a boy of about 10 or 11 came up to me. He leaned in, glanced at his younger siblings, then whispered, "Is he real?" as he gestured to Goofy.

I leaned down and whispered back, "Of course he's real. Everything at Disney is, don't you know?" He frowned for a second, and then looked up at Goofy, as if trying to decide whether it really was him. "You just have to believe," I said in encouragement. He kept his eyes on Goofy, biting his lip.

When it was his turn, he tried to take his little brother to see Goofy, but he stayed put and pouted. "He's not real!" he whined, and stomped his foot.

The boy I'd talked to looked at me, then at Goofy, and grinned. "Sure he's real. See? Goofy, aren't you real?" Goofy nodded enthusiastically and waved.

He knelt down next to his brother. "I believe in Goofy. He's totally real. If I believe in him, don't you?" The little boy peered up at Goofy from under a large baseball cap and then at his brother, and shook his head yes.

The older boy smiled, took his brother's hand, and walked up to Goofy. The little one took off his hat, and held out a pen, saying, "Mister Goofy? Since you're real, can you sign my hat?"