“I just wish things would work out for me!” These were the daily thoughts of James Leary. A man in his 20’s, James had become accustomed to blaming everything on bad luck. He felt he had nothing going for him and nothing in his favor. Even his name, James, felt too common.
Having recently lost his job, which he only had for a week, James was feeling even more down and depressed than normal. Deciding there was nothing left for him in the town which he currently lived; James packed up what little belongings he had and departed into the unknown. Although he did not care for moving, it was something that had become a routine in the recent years. He would move to a new city, try his hand at a number of odd jobs, be unsuccessful, and then move once more only to repeat the scene somewhere new. Having repeated this so many times, James found himself no longer caring about anything.
When he first left home, he was like any other boy his age. He had aspirations to do great things and a desire to make a name for him. At first, he traveled to the big cities, feeling these places offered the most opportunities. Unfortunately, his first few attempts did not work out, and his hopes, dreams, and wants slowly slipped away with each failure. The truth of the matter, however, is that his efforts had slipped away as well. Already assuming the worst, James attempted everything he did in vain.
So, once again, James found himself looking for a new place to begin. Unsure of what direction he was even traveling, he hoped to reach some other town before the day’s end. It was spring, and the fresh crisp air gave James a sense of hope; one he undoubtedly didn’t expect to last.
Judging from the fatigue in his legs and the position of the sun, James reasoned that he had been walking for about four hours and that it was around 2:00 in the afternoon. He stopped briefly for lunch about an hour prior, but didn’t linger for long as he was unsure how much longer he would have to travel. It was about another hour into his journey that James came across a strange surrounding within the woods he was attempting to pass through.
Up to this point, the trip had been anything but eventful. He had encountered no one on the way; even when he entered the woods the scenery he had spent all morning with stayed practically the same. Now, things were beginning to look different. With each passing step, James noticed that the scarce trees of the woods seemed to multiply. Not only were they growing in number, but the skinny trees that had first presented themselves when entering the woods seemed to be doubling in size as well. To add further to his astonishment, this curious phenomenon seemed to be happening immediately around him, or the path on which he was roving. For, when looking out at a distance to either his right or left, he beheld those same scant trees.
At first, the peculiarity of the situation gave James a powerful urge to run. However, like most people, his inquisitiveness got the better of him and he continued on. Not longer than a minute later, the entire vista had changed and James found himself standing amid a lush forest. Vibrant plants dotted the ground beside the now enormous trees. Between them, looking up, the sky appeared a rich blue, while the beams of the sun showered down the earth. The entire view screamed magnificence; and, at the very center of this elaboration stood a well.
Surprisingly, the presence of the well among the paradisiacal environment seemed natural, as if it were the sole reason for its existence. James walked over to it. Appearing as if was crafted out of a single stone; the well had neither blemish nor flaw. He gazed at it admiringly. Then, out of the corner of his eye, a glimmer caught his attention. Etched around the summit of the well, in gold, were these words:
This location, as one might tell
Is where you’ve found the Wishing Well
So search within for what you need
Then cast one wish and heed the deed.
Had he read correctly? Was this really a wishing well? He read the words again. Yes, he had read them correct the first time. Could this be for real? Under normal circumstance, James never would have believed such extravagance; but, recalling the recent events, he justified that this may not be considered normal. Over the next several minutes, James thought about what he wanted most. Fame? Fortune? Better luck? A beautiful wife? If only he wasn’t limited to only one wish…
Then, out of nowhere, James heard an uproar that startled him from his thoughts. He turned to see two men and a woman approach the enigma.
“Ha ha ha ha! At last!” said the first man to approach.
“Yes,” echoed the second man, “At last, we’ve finally found the well!”
“No thanks to either of you two, might I add,” retorted the woman.
“Very true,” added the second man, smiling.
It was at this point that they noticed James. “Hello there,” the second man said as he dropped the bag he was carrying, “who might you be?”
“My name is –” James started to reply, but was cut off by the first man.
“And how is it that you found out about this place?”
“Actually,” said James, “I just kind of walked into it… by accident.”
The first man began to laugh again. “You mean to tell me that we’ve spent the past eleven months searching for this well, and you just happened to find it on accident?”
“I don’t see the humor in that one bit,” the woman said, straight-faced.
“Sorry,” began James, but was gain cut off, this time by the second man.
“Don’t apologize, friend, consider yourself lucky.”
That was definitely a notion that has never crossed James’ mind before – the idea of being lucky.
“What exactly is this place?” James asked in a louder-than-usual voice, to ensure that he wouldn’t be cut off a third time.
“This place is called ‘Expers Locus,’” replied the second man in Latin, “Or ‘The Wishing Well.’” He continued, “Perhaps you’ve heard of it? Legend of it has existed in my family for centuries; some of us believed in it, others didn’t. Am I sure glad that I was one of the believers?!”
James stood in silence. He had never heard of such a place. Although it was common to pass down legends within families, and certain parts of the land, he was surprised that anyone would actually surmise in such a locale. Yet, once again, he could not deny the reality of the situation.
Another moment of silence passed.
“Alright then,” blurted out the first man. James theorized that he was the self-proclaimed leader of their group. “Let us do what we’ve come here to perform. I’ll go first.”
The man walked over to the mouth of the well and, after a moment’s hesitation, placed his hands on the brim. He cleared his throat, and then in a loud, almost ritualistic manner, began, “Great Wishing Well! My family has lived in poverty for many years. I have many siblings and there’s hardly enough room to fit us all. Great Wishing Well, for my wish, I wish for a palace! Not just any palace, but one that would make kings shake with envy!”
When he was finished, the man stepped back and waited. He stayed staring at the well, obviously waiting for some sort of sign that the well had heard his wish, or that it had been granted. As the man was about to turn to inquire of his companions, the well seemed to come alive with commotion. Blinding beams of light shot out of its opening, illuminating the world in view. James shielded his eyes in response, for so bright was the luminescence.
A moment later, he heard the first man cry in outrage, “What is this?” James opened his eyes to find an enormous amount of lumber next to a sublime pile of brick and stone. The man repeated his question, “What is this?”
This time it was the second man who laughed and then stated, “You can’t even properly make a wish.”
The first man retorted back, “I envisioned it perfectly in my mind when I wished for it; I even had the exact location of where I wanted it specified.” He looked down at the materials. “This is not what I wished for,” he continued. “I will never be able to transport all of this back to my own land. Even if I could, it would take years to build such a home out of all of this.”
James watched as the man gave one final look at his would-be palace, shook his head in disgust, and then walked away without another word or single glance toward his fellow escorts.
“I guess that’s that,” stated the woman.
“I guess so,” replied the second man. He looked at the well and then the woman. “Ladies first,” he offered.
“No, thanks,” she said. “You’re the one who told me about this place, so you can go next. Besides,” she continued as a wry smile formed on her face, “I need to see if you do anything different to make things work out better for you.”
The man returned a friendly smile and then walked over to the well. He too placed his hands on the well, paused as if to focus his thoughts, and then simply said, “I wish for all of the gold that is in this land.”
The man stepped back and immediately covered his eyes in anticipation of the blaze that would soon engulf his vision. James and the woman mimicked his gesture just as rays of light began to spring forth from the well.
To ensure that the atmosphere had returned to a tolerable level of brightness, James waited longer than was probably needed before unveiling his eyes. In contrast to the first man who had erupted in bewilderment, the man before him now was completely silent and stood looking down at something. James followed the man’s gaze to the floor of the forest, expecting to observe a vast amount of shimmering rocks. On the ground, however, lay a rock hammer and a sifting pan, but not a single flake of gold.
The man bent over and picked the items up. He carefully examined them, and then with a faint smile, softly said, “Clever.” He searched the objects over once more, and then walked over to his belongings where he placed them inside his bag. He gathered up his possessions and then turned to face the woman. With the same modest smile displayed across his lips, he muttered, “Good luck,” and then turned to leave.
“Where are you going?” the woman called after him.
“To fulfill my wish!” the man called back.
The woman didn’t inquire any further as she watched the man disappear from view. She stood a moment in silence and then turned to James and said, “I’m up.”
She walked over to the spot where her two male companions had previously stood. Unlike them though, she did not place her hands on the edge of the well. Instead, she sat down on its fringe and began to trace the gold etching in the stone. “Wishing Well,” she began, as her fingers continued to dance across the threshold, “I wish, please, that I will be accepted and appreciated by everyone I meet, anywhere I go.”
The woman continued to sit there as the same radiant display of light surrounded them both. When it had vanished, James looked over at the woman, who was already in the process of retrieving something by her side. The woman twirled the object in her hand and, catching his own eyes staring back, he knew that she had received a mirror.
“I don’t understand,” the woman said, almost to herself, as she looked at James.
James, who had been watching all of the events unfold, replied, “I think I might.”
The woman looked at him with inquisitive eyes.
He continued, “You’re first friend that made a wish wanted a house, right? An enormous palace for all of his family. That’s not what he received though. However, he did receive all of the materials necessary to build such a place.”
He paused for a minute to collect his thoughts, and then began again, “The second friend of yours wanted riches; gold, to be specific. He didn’t have any gold given to him; but, just as the first, he was given what was needed to obtain it.”
The woman’s expression didn’t change the whole time that he spoke to her. When he was finished explaining his perception of the events, the woman held up her mirror in response, and asked, “What about this?”
Admittedly, the woman’s gift was harder to reason, but James felt he understood hers as well. “You asked to be accepted and appreciated by others, but I think what you need is to learn to accept and appreciate yourself first.”
The woman removed her gaze from his and concentrated it on the ground. He did not know the woman, so his presumption of her gift and its implications could be wrong. Due to her reaction, however, he speculated that he was correct.
The woman continued to stare at the ground in complete silence. After another moment, she shook her head ‘yes,’ as if agreeing with some sort of resolution, stood up, retrieved her things, and then turned to face James. She didn’t say anything, only beamed at him with her resilient, bright eyes. Then, as both of the others had done before her, she too turned and walked away.
James looked around the vicinity; he was now alone. He walked over to the well and peered down its opening. It looked just like a normal well, yet James knew it was not. His mind reviewed all that had just happened; how the well had given nothing that was wanted, but everything that was needed. He then began to think of his own life and the recent events that had led up to this point.
“I spend most of my time wishing things would happen and almost no time making things happen,” he said aloud; half toward himself, half toward the well. He peered down the well once more. Then, slowly he turned from the well and started to walk away. James knew he still had a wish he could make, and that he would probably never encounter a place like this ever again.
But, that was the point; James understood that he needed to stop wishing and start acting. And with this newly found percipience, he set off in continuation for a city where he could begin anew.
By Aaron Michael
