Don't get frozen and miss out

I really don't like missing out on good opportunities.

Especially when Disney movies are involved.

I don't go to the movie theaters often, and, other than a documentary I saw last summer, I'm pretty sure the last movie I saw on the big screen was Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2. (Judge all you want—the first one was awesome.) I'm sure I have valid reasons: I don't like the anxiety of not being able to find a seat where I'm completely centered, I struggle to stay comfortable for extended periods of time, I don't like not being able to talk or hear if I have questions about the film, and I usually can't make it through an entire movie without having to go to the restroom. Wow, I just described a toddler. Oh, I also don't like having to pay so much money for one movie. Ok, I feel a bit more adult now.

Like I said, I feel pretty justified in my avoidance of movie theaters. However, I had a pretty solid plan of taking myself to the movies for Valentine's Day on Friday night to see Frozen, which I've been wanting to see ever since it was released. (If you're curious why I hadn't already seen it, please see the previous paragraph.) Imagine, if you will, being a little kid and hearing the ice cream truck outside. You sit around for a few minutes, maybe finishing up your video game or television show or just being lazy before you start running around the house looking for your mom—and any possibility of loose change—so that you can have some money for a treat. Then, you finally get the money and book it out the door only to find that sketch truck filled with your potential happiness is nowhere in sight. The music is now just a faint sound in the distance. You had waited too long, and your chance for frozen bliss was gone.

Don't sue me, Disney

That's how I felt when I looked at the beginning of the week and didn't see Frozen playing in any theater near me for Friday.

I was devastated, to say the least. The one time I was actually going to go to a movie theater wasn't going to happen simply because I had waited too long. I scolded myself for not seizing an opportunity when it had been in front of me for so long.

Now, had I been smart, I would have checked back later in the week, because I just noticed today that there are updated showtimes, and it appears Frozen is indeed still making viewers smile. So I didn't just miss out once on seeing this tale that has so many people—even my high school kiddos—raving, but I missed out a second time by giving up hope.

Talk about a happy Valentine's Day.

We encounter so many different situations in life full of various opportunities, and it hurts to have to think about what might have been when we don't take those chances. And when they do seem to escape our grasps, we can't just give up on things that we know are meant to be. By golly, I will see Frozen. Tuesday seems like a good day for that.

And, unlike the lyrics of the song I already know so well from the movie, you shouldn't always just "let it go."