Dear Editor:
Change is hard. Growing up, I can’t even begin to count how many times my parents fed me the whole, “back when I was a kid…” line, to which I begrudgingly rolled my eyes. And yet now, as an adult, I catch myself doing the very same thing to our children as we try to navigate this new world that they live in.
There are so many aspects of my childhood that I think were better, safer, or easier than the way things are today. But as frustrating and hard as change can be, this generational trend of missing the “good ole days” isn’t something that is going to go away. The world is constantly changing, adapting and evolving, and naturally, our children will adhere to and adjust to the changes much more fluidly than we do.
With that said, is all change really “bad?” Back to my parents (whom I am sure will read this and thank me for throwing them under the bus), they are about as stubborn as they come in terms of change. Both have stayed far away from any and all social media. Both struggle with evolving fashion trends, home decorating trends, and anything that involves multiple remotes or a touch screen. The phone in their kitchen still has a cord attached to it and they still make their own ice in ice cube trays. My mom regularly complains about everything being automated when using the phone, and my dad hates having to schedule flights, vacations, or purchase tickets using the “world wide web.” It is also extremely painful to watch either of my parents navigate their laptop computer. Like I stated earlier, life was “way easier” back when they were kids.
But another interesting fact about my parents is that they LOVE Disney World. They went to Disney World for their honeymoon, took us to Disney multiple times growing up, and have continued visiting the parks as empty nesters and with grandchildren in tow. And while there has been some initial pushback each time Disney rolls out some fancy new idea (think Fast Passes and online reservations six months in advance, just to name a few), I haven’t noticed the same grumbling and nostalgia for the past with Disney that we tend to get from the two of them about other places and things. In fact, my dad will be the first to praise how well Disney has adapted and changed with the times.
And this is where my analogy officially sets in.
You see, Disney has changed. A lot. It’s bigger, fancier and more automated than it was 20 to 30 years ago. It has more parks, more rides, more hotels, more restaurants and more tech-ridden gadgets than maybe Walt Disney ever even intended. But somehow, Disney has managed to maintain its “happiest place on earth” reputation.
Does Disney look different than it did 30 years ago? Absolutely! But, is Cinderella Castle still intact and still a major identifier to Disney’s world renowned image? For sure. Are there significantly bigger, faster and more technology-driven rides at Disney than there were 30 years ago? Yep. But you can still find “It’s a Small World,” “Jungle Cruise,” “Pirates of the Caribbean,” “The Tiki Room” and many other gems amidst the shiny, new rides.
That is how Disney has thrived. It has kept its charm and its identity while evolving and staying competitive with the times. And through thoughtful planning and collaboration, Disney has managed to keep “the old” while enhancing itself with “the new.”
That is my hope for Noblesville – that through thoughtful planning and collaboration, we can find ways to honor and respect the past while also seeing the necessity for growth and change. Adding infrastructures to Noblesville isn’t bad. Making Noblesville bigger and better isn’t bad. Bringing more people to Noblesville isn’t bad. Making sure Noblesville is keeping up with the times and staying competitive with neighboring communities isn’t bad. It just needs to be done the right way. And in my opinion, that involves a lot of collaboration, compromise, idea sharing, listening, leadership, and a community willing to take risks and embrace change.
If Disney had just stayed the same, like the “good ole days,” it would no longer exist. It wouldn’t have made enough money to thrive, wouldn’t have attracted enough people to visit it or employ and it would have turned into a run-down, abandoned memory. I grew up near an amusement park called Geauga Lake in Aurora, Ohio. As a family, we had season tickets and spent many fun-filled evenings there. I recently googled it and found an article titled “15 Photos of Abandoned Geauga Lake Amusement Park.” Talk about a downer.
I get it, change is hard. But I’d rather Noblesville’s change resemble that of Disney World’s than Geauga Lake’s. Try as we might to avoid it, we live in a modern age and the world can’t stand still. Let’s work together to find ways to honor our past, hold on to what works, let go of what doesn’t and be open-minded to new growth and ideas.
Julie Jensen
Noblesville
I think Noblesville’s most defining feature is its historic richness and diverse population. We do not need or in my opinion want to become Carmel Version 3.0. Fishers is well on their way to being Carmel V2.0 currently. Let them chase their rainbows and unicorns.
We have and are the guardians of Hamilton Counties real treasure chest. Noblesville is the only large Authentic city in Hamilton County.
We are the authentic, affordable alternative to the #1 an #2 teams the writer seems to aspire to become.
We must preserve what is great and build on our best traditions. We actually have a history that we value. Carmel and Fishers have torn down everything and started from scratch.
Now about the letter:
As someone obviously old enough to be the writer’s parent I found the tone of this letter somewhat demeaning. I am an analytical person and I heard emotional words used continually throughout her story.
Indeed of 852 words, just 3 words were used 4% of the time. Number one word was Disney mentioned 16 times, followed by Change mentioned 11 times and Bad which was mentioned 5 times.
I feel for both the writer and her family in that it seems they all had some very challenging years. Indeed the pain seems real as also used were the words frustrating, hard, stubborn, stayed away, struggle, complain, hates and painful
It honestly became too difficult to comprehend as a non-corded phone using 60 something that is happy with their life. The concern about doing it bigger, fancier and more automated followed by more parks, more rides, more hotels, more attractions sounded like we were again talking about Carmel, not Noblesville.
We should not compromise or authenticity to meet the needs of folks more suited for Carmel or Fishers than Noblesville.
Ummm, bet I know who her husband is—the man running for mayor who is being supported by the current mayor. Funny how the current mayor and possibly this lady’s husband are attempting to remove Noblesville’s Rails for trails; and, pushing to build the Levinson—costing taxpayers $$$$$$$ while destroying Noblesville’s Historical buildings and rails.