The Tree of Wishes

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Nora sat on the precipice
Overlooking her existence
Under the tree of wishes.

It took her many moons
To find this tree
And many more moons
To learn that she had to look for it.

With soul tired
And spirit weary,
She sat and listened
To the wind blowing through the leaves.

Strangely enough,
The sound started to make sense
And she was able to make out something.
She could understand.

“What do you wish?
What do you desire, child?”
The tree speaks,
How wonderful.


“Well, I want a big house
On a hill overlooking the sea.
I want a Lamborghini
With suicide doors and 20” rims
And I want….”

“Shhh!!!”
“Silence, child!!
I speak not to you,”
Spoke the tree.

“Then who are you speaking to?”
Nora asked,
Her voice tinged with
Confusion and irritation.

“I only speak to hearts.
Spirits, souls and minds
Are tainted by all
They have been exposed to.”

“It is your heart
That knows for sure
What it is you want,
Not what you believe you want.”

“Be quiet child,
And listen with me.”
It was more out of curiosity
That Nora did as she was told.

An hour had passed,
And just as Nora’s impatience
Won its battle with her patience,
She heard a voice.

“Wha…!?!”
Up jumped Nora
Prepared to fight or flee
When she saw some one approaching
From the shadows
Of the tree of wishes.

“Silence, child,
I’m trying to listen.”
It was a child.
It was her at 3 or 4.

Try as she could,
Nora could not make out
What the child was saying,
But the tree swayed
As though nodding,
As though comprehending.

“Is that all?”
Asked the tree.
The child nodded
Then turned and walked
Back into the shadows.

“What did she say?
What does my heart want?”
Nora wanted to know.

“What? You didn’t hear?”
Questioned the tree.

“I heard but I didn’t
Understand a thing she said,”
Was Nora’s answer.

“This is sad, indeed,
But I will grant your heart’s wish,”
Said the tree.

“What good is the wish
If I don’t know what it is?
I would not even recognize it
If I walked up to it.”
Nora grumbled.

“I am only granting this wish
For your heart,
It is quite evident that
You are not ready for it.”

“The sun is about to rise,
Be on your way, child.
Only return when you know
What your heart wishes.”

“Then I will never see you again?”
Asked Nora.

“Sit quietly and you will hear,
She will speak to you.
Let go of everything you believe
And open your mind,
She will speak to you,”
Answered the tree.

Morning broke
And Nora awoke in her bed,
The words of the tree of wishes
Echoed in her head.

Many moons had passed
Before Nora found herself
At the tree of wishes.

“You know,
She spoke to you.”
The tree stated,
It did not ask.

Nora looked out
At her existence,
And nodded a confirmation.

“One day,
When everything was going wrong,
And all I wanted to do
Was curl up in my bed and hide,
I took a chance,”
Her words were soft.

“I threw away all my beliefs
And opened my mind.
She appeared at my side
And she hugged me tightly,
Then whispered in my ear.”
A tear rolled down Nora’s cheek.

“What did she say, child?
Say it out loud.”
The tree shivered in anticipation.

“She wanted to be happy.
She wanted us to be happy.”

Nora turned back to the tree,
Tears streaking down her cheeks.
“Why haven’t you granted her wish?”

“I did, my child,
But I can not do it alone,
I need your help
To make this wish come true,”
Answered the tree of wishes.

“But how?
How can I help?
I don’t know how.”
Anger tinged Nora’s speech.

“Just be.
As a lion is a lion
And a snake is a snake,
They are what they are
By being what they are.
You must be happy.”
These were the trees last words,
Morning had broken.

Nora lay in bed,
Eyes wide open
With a choice to be made.

That morning,
Nora chose to be happy.
Her heart’s wish was granted.