Words from Dic(tionary)

Aladdin’s lamp: (n) a talisman enabling its holder to gratify any wish

I guess I’ve thought about this. Who hasn’t?

What would I do with three wishes?

It’s been the plotline of dramas and comedies throughout the history of entertainment. And indirectly, both religion and politics have alluded to such an unlikely possibility.

I guess, for me, it’s easy. Before pursuing three wishes, I would have to deal with my own needs. Maybe I should use a wish for it: “I wish I understood my own heart better.”

What is my heart?

• It’s the emotional part of me which controls who I am, which I publicly deny as having any authority over my being.
• It is how I carefully learn to maneuver my selfishness into a practical application which still includes room for others.
• It’s where I learn to budget sufficiency until it becomes wealth.
• My heart is a place where I am no longer afraid to express my feelings for fear of transparency
• It is a journey into a cave with the hope of finding light at the end of the tunnel.
• It is admitting that I have love for myself which I should translate equally to others.
• It is taking my position as the “light of the world” and the “salt of the earth” without it ending up being a pompous boast.
• It is stopping to think that if I am thirsty, someone else might need a cup of cold water.
• It is clearing out my inner being without being afraid of discovering too many rats and spiders.

Yes, before I could rub Aladdin’s lamp and promote my three wishes, I would have to understand what I really desire and why it is of value to me.

After all, what is of more consequence?

The idea? Or the person who thinks?

The prayer? Or the faithful soul?

The well-sung hymn? Or the passionate singer?

Sometimes we forget: wishing for things means they have to be used by people.

In order for that to be effective, we should wish for understanding.