When I was in middle school, a friend told me to hold my breath while going over a bridge. If you held on the entire time, then at the end you got to make a wish. Ever since then, I have stuck to that guidance for every bridge crossing. Which has made for a few questionable driving speed choices.

After taking this picture of a dandelion, I was thinking about all of the things that we are told as children we can make wishes on:

• The first star in the night sky
• The petals of a flower
• Your birthday candle (especially appropriate since my birthday is this Friday)
• A coin tossed into a well
• When the clock is exactly on 11:11 (especially at night when you are supposed to be asleep)

Each of these moments are a chance to add a little magic into the world. And a way to realize what you really want.

Is there a wish you make on every single candle, coin, and bridge?

I believe in magic. I believe Narnia could be just inside the next closet and a unicorn might be galloping through the woods while I run along the trail. I believe that a rainbow in the sky is more than just light refracting through rainclouds.

I also believe in doing the work. If my wish is to run the Boston Marathon, then I need to put in the miles. If I’m closing my eyes and hoping beyond hope to be a published author, then I better be working on stories when I open my eyes back up. And if I am dreaming of world peace, then I need to vote, to get my signature on petitions, and to donate to worthy causes (like the NAACP, ACLU, and Tolstan).

Make a wish. And make a change.