Wishes

I love to wish. I wish on stars and wishbones and dandelions and when I tie my paper straw cover into a knot and pull. But several times I've been told wishing is silly and a waste of time and that goal setting is a much more productive use of one's time. Now I completely agree that goal setting is necessary and a wonderful way to accomplish things, but can it really replace wishing? I mean, I can't set a goal to fly, or be accepted into hogwarts or to meet Shakespeare and have afternoon tea with Dickens in the same day. Wishing lends to the imagination and gives the heart and mind a moment to entertain the impossible and remember what it feels like to be a child certain she is capable of anything and how free it feels to actually think that. And you can also wish for realistic things. Like, I wish to write a book, travel to Rome, fall in love for eternity, dance in the Hawaiin rain again, and speak one of the romance languages fluently. Wishing reminds you to dream and hope and think outside the boundaries the harsh reality the real world sets for you the moment you start to grow up. Now I understand the warning presented by those who do not believe in wishing. If you wish too much or if you constantly wish away your past and your mistakes, and can find yourself at the end of your life with empty memories and only unfulfilled wishes to fill your heart as it beats for the last time. Not to go all Harry Potter nerd on you, but Albus Dumbledore said it best: "It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live". So yes, I must wish and hope and dream and feed my imagination, but I must not forget to live and accomplish things with my life as well. My wishing can inspire me to action and I can fulfill my goals AND my dreams. Wishes and goals don't have to be mutually exclusive. So this summer (I know it's spring but this is MY summer vacation) I wish to get a job, visit with those I love, stay up all night, go running every day I can, lift at least one person's heart, and develop better letter writing habits for my friends soon to leave on missions. I may not accomplish all of these things this summer (though I desperately hope I can get a job) but my wishes have given my vacation potential purpose and meaning. I may not need a shooting star or a straw wrapper that rips just right, but by wishing and dreaming I become a productive and fulfilled member of humanity, and I would never trade that for anything in the world.

             "Always leave something to wish for; otherwise you will be miserable from your very happiness"
                                    -Spanish Philosopher Baltasar Gracian