Here’s a question: if you were granted three wishes tomorrow, what would you wish for? After all, fairy tale protagonists get to make wishes all the time. Aladdin’s magic lamp is the most well-known example, but it’s such a common trope that frankly I’m stunned when characters have no idea what to ask for. Or worse: they wish for mundane, ridiculous things they could achieve all on their own with no magic. If I was ever presented such an opportunity, I guarantee you I would not waste even one wish.
I’ve Thought a Little Too Much About This . . .
When you’re a creative human being who spends most of her life debating impossible hypotheticals in her head, you think a lot about how you would respond to various situations, both good and bad. I’ve had years to think about what my three wishes would be. I even wrote an editorial on this subject when I was seventeen (the contents of which I will reveal shortly).
If you’re wondering how to make the most of three wishes, there are three areas you want to cover in my humble opinion. The first wish needs to change the world. Wish number two should eliminate your biggest annoyance. And wish number three can help you achieve your greatest dream.
What those three wishes should be is a highly personal choice that only you can answer, but I’m certainly open to sharing my best ideas . . .
Wish #1: Go Big or Go Home
I mean, this is a magical wish for crying out loud. How far could this magic go exactly? If you’re not willing to at least attempt to change the world as we know it, then I am appalled by your lack of creativity. Think big!
There’s the obvious choice of ending world hunger in one fell swoop, but what if your three wishes require a little more specificity? You could end world hunger by wishing that human beings no longer had to eat to survive. We can still eat for enjoyment. We just don’t have to anymore. Think on that.
Or how about wishing for all the pollution on earth to just . . . disappear. The next time a junior high kid tosses a Coke can in my yard, ZAP! Gone. Millions of tons of trash in the ocean would disappear in one second. Smoggy cities? Suddenly pristine! Better yet, I would wish for pollution to continue disappearing spontaneously. Forever.
Or—or! We could use this wish to stop the most evil human beings in the world from messing things up for all the rest of us. What if you wished to make murder impossible? Or kidnapping for that matter? What if you made it impossible for politicians to lie? THAT is a wish I would sorely love to make . . .
Wish #2: Bring on the Convenience Magic!
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a total altruist. I would LOVE to eliminate the most annoying and time-consuming aspects of my life with a sprinkle of pixie dust. And this is what wish number two is for.
When I thought about my three wishes at seventeen, my busy, frazzled self decided she would wish to no longer need sleep. Hear me out: the average person spends a third—A THIRD—of their lifetime asleep. I already have terrible sleeping genes, so I’m exhausted pretty much always. Just think how much more you could get done if you never felt fatigued and had an extra eight hours every day.
The sleep thing is a good idea, but I’m also very partial to wishing for teleportation. What if I could look at a picture or think of any place I’ve been and just appear there? Better yet, what if I could teleport other people and objects with me? I’m talking no more driving, no more airplanes, no more moving crews to rearrange my furniture. No more buying gas EVER. Moving people and things around is such a complicated part of life, and I would gladly wish for this chore to disappear.
Wish #3: A Dream Is a Wish Your Heart Makes . . .
Now hold up! I have some strong stipulations in this area. Using magic to make your fondest wish a reality has huge potential to kill your dreams. I would NEVER wish to suddenly be a paid, published author, even though that’s my dream job. That’s a goal I’d rather achieve on my own merit. And I’d certainly never wish myself to heaven or wish for power that I’ve done nothing to deserve.
But there are other dreams of mine that magic could certainly help . . .
Aside from writing for a living, I have an ultimate goal of financial freedom for my family, and I definitely plan to invest in others’ dreams in the future. Having a never-ending bank account from which I could withdraw any amount of money would be quite useful. Not only would it eliminate our need to work nine to five jobs, it would give us the ability to travel, create, start non-profits, invest in life-saving research, and give other creative minds the ability to do what they love too. I’m sure all of these opportunities will come my way eventually, but why wait a lifetime when I could use one of my three wishes to make it a reality now?
But I guess if I had to pin down my one ultimate dream, it would be to live a full life with the people I love. I could always wish for perpetual good luck for everyone in my family. We’d be invincible from natural setbacks like layoffs, cavities, car accidents—basically all the random tragedies that put a damper on life. Better yet, this wish would expand every time a kid is born. I am a fan of wishes that only grow with time.
But You Know What I’d Really Wish For?
Really, I just want the guarantee of a long and happy life with my wonderful husband. I’m a firm believer that happiness doesn’t come out of a bottle (even a magic one), but what about a wish for us to have perfect health for the rest of our lives and live to a designated age that Andy and I decide together? I would never want to live forever, but I’d be down to never experience a common cold again.
All of this is hypothetical of course. It’s possible I would choose a completely different set of three wishes ten years from now than I would tomorrow. So I’ll continue thinking through the possibilities every time I brush my teeth. ❧
