Wishes

“Hello, Nicholas!” Leon called out to his friend. “Do you know what’s happening tonight?” Nicholas shook his head.

“I heard on the radio tonight you’ll be able to see shooting stars. If you see one, you can make a wish!” Nicholas’ eyes lit up. “But your wish must remain a secret, otherwise, it won’t come true!” Leon warned his friend.

Nicholas spent the whole day thinking about what he could wish for. He could hardly wait to go out into the garden in the evening. When it got dark, he set up a chair.

“Nicholas, what are you doing?” asked his mom. 

“There are shooting stars tonight, and if you see one, you can make a wish!” 

Smiling, Mrs. Werner pulled up a chair next to him and sat down. They sat together for a while, but Nicholas was getting impatient. His mother stroked his hair: “You know, shooting stars are beautiful, but they’re just shining particles flying around in space and cannot grant wishes. Instead, you can come to God with all your wishes!”

Nicholas nodded. “But God isn’t going to give me the latest computer game….” 

“Maybe not. But God hears us and knows what’s good for us. Sometimes, we want something that might not be good for us. Imagine if there was nothing but sunshine for a week. We would be happy, but grandma doesn’t feel good in the heat, and the flowers in the garden need rain. If you had a new computer game, you might spend too much time indoors instead of helping Dad or playing with your friends.”

Nicholas thought for a while. “But there’s nothing wrong with me sometimes playing on the computer.”

“This computer game you want isn’t bad. But if you don’t get it, there are plenty of other ways to be happy. God wants you to enjoy life. When you help Dad or play with friends, that makes you happy, doesn’t it?” Nicholas nodded. Suddenly, a shooting star flew across the sky. Nicholas reflected, “Thank you, God, for knowing what I need and taking care of me.”

Katharina Raiser