HANNAH #16

Making My Wish Count and

It can’t be too big or too small, so what will it be?

By now, everyone but me had made their wishes known, and yesterday Lucy got to act on hers. Yes, here I am, sitting with a deep purple streak along the right side of my part. It definitely stands out, and sometimes when I look in the mirror — which I have been doing quite a bit since she “gave” me this look (I actually think I gave her the opportunity to live out her wish), I hardly recognize myself.

Looking in the mirror, I imagine having a bold twin who looks just like me but is very different … and who loves purple. As Alfred and I had discussed, my color is red, but I’m glad I didn’t tell Lucy that. Otherwise, I’d probably be looking at a loud red streak which would feel even more over-the-top.

It was my turn for a wish, though, and I was going big. After all, I had eaten fish tacos, played doubles for Ben, and changed my look for Lucy. I was now ready to share.

Me: Ok, guys, I know what I want.

Ben: Can we get a reference? Are we talking dessert? After-dinner activity? If so, please don’t make it Twister. That was way too awkward.

Me: Nope, we’re talking about my wish.

Dad: Finally! I’ve been waiting to see what we’re on the hook for.

Me: Well, wait no longer, and it’s kind of big.

So I explained that before I left for Terre Haute, Alfred had shared with me a conversation he had with his mom. She made him watch Wizard of Oz, which he sat through begrudgingly (another word that I love). In the movie, Dorothy wants to return to Kansas but can only do so after she realizes that our power lies within us. Glinda, the good witch, teaches her this, and that’s when Dorothy clicks her heels three times.

Ben was looking restless, and Lucy looked confused. My dad was focused like a laser beam, awaiting my orders. What a motley crew, I thought! And what if they rebelled when I uttered my wish? What if they said, “No. We’re not gonna do it.” A slight fear crept inside, but I trusted my dad to see this through. So, after a deep breath, I continued.

Me: My dream comes in two parts. Part one is for each of us to write something. Imagine a journal entry.

Ben (interrupting): I don’t need to imagine a journal entry. You’ve had me journaling all summer.

Me: Yes, you’re right, but Lucy and Dad haven’t. So let me continue. I want everyone to imagine themselves as Dorothy, clicking their heels three times and now realizing a newfound power inside. What is the nature of the power you’ve just discovered, and what will you do with it?

Dad: Wow, this feels complicated.

Lucy: Hannah, I am not a writer like you are.

Suddenly, I needed to feel like Coach and offer my faith in them. I told my dad that he was a smart man who solved problems every day, so my wish should be well within his comfort zone.

I told Lucy that I’d learned this summer that people often have more game than we realize. She had surprised me so many times over the last month. She had anticipated the need for sriracha which meant that my dad’s fish taco dinner was not a disaster. She had a tennis game — who knew? And she saw the significance of Calpurnia in To Kill a Mockingbird in a way that I had never seen.

“Lucy,” I said, “You’ve been full of surprises, and my guess is that you will surprise me again. You are way smarter than you give yourself credit for. Anyway, my wish has no grades attached. We’re just sharing ideas.”

When I said this, Lucy broke out into a huge smile.

“I think that purple streak has made you even smarter if that is possible.”

At this point, Ben chimed in. He cautioned Lucy not to make my ego too big, and then he said, in the most serious voice,

“Hannah, I’ve been writing for you all summer. Do I need to do this?”

I hardly knew where to start in my response, but it was immediate:

Me: Benjamin Howard Fletcher, you have not been writing for me. You have been writing for you! Did you forget?

Ben: It seems like I did. I mean, I don’t mind writing, and sometimes it can be fun, but you know me, Hannah. I’d rather be outside with a ball.

Me: Well, you get plenty of that too. So now, I am going to feel like Ms. Hazel, your schoolteacher that you love to hate. Yes, you need to write a journal entry on a new power you’ve discovered, and I am going to add something extra that is only for you. I’d like you to write about an assumption you’ve made that turns out to be wrong.

Ben: Why do I need to write two things?

Me (pausing, thinking): For two reasons. First, I am curious about an assumption you’ve held that you now think differently about. And two, it’s a small way for me to release my anger at suggesting that you were writing for me.

Ben: So, it’s a form of punishment?

Me: Not exactly, but if you want to call it that, you can. What I will do is show my gratitude by playing tennis this afternoon. That way, you’ll get your ball time in before you sit down to write.

Ben was now quiet. Lucy was thinking. My dad was glad to know what he was on the hook for. I was now wondering whether to share part two of my wish.

Then I thought, “What the heck. As Alfred likes to say, ‘In for a penny. In for a pound.’”

Me: One more thing. There is a part two to my wish.

Dad: Let’s have it.

Me: After we share our newly discovered power within, I want us to read a book together and do a small book club before Ben, and I head out.

Dad: That’s a great idea.

Ben: It depends on the book, Dad.

Lucy: Ben, I am learning that most books have something to offer, and anyway, Hannah would only pick a good book.

Me: Huckleberry Finn. There, you have it.

Dad: Can I ask why that pick?

Me: Sure. Huck and Jim go down the Mississippi River together. In the course of their experience, they learn about themselves. The river plays a big part. Maybe, in the same way, Terre Haute plays a part for us. I see my wishes as connected.

At this point, Ben looked defeated. Lucy seemed like she needed to go. I think she wanted to get started on her assignment. My dad looked relieved.

I did the natural thing. I emailed Alfred.

Alfred,

Boy, do I have a lot to share. It was finally time for me to state my end-of-summer wish, and you would have liked what I picked. As a matter of fact, you can do it too; only it would be relative to your summer with Nellie and Joey and other parts I don’t know about.

I sometimes think back to your parting words when I headed out. You said, “Remember that an open mind is a wonderful thing. It will reshape your world if you let it.”

Consider myself reshaped, thanks to my summer in Terre Haute. The power of discovery is awesome. We will have some fun translating that idea into a production come fall.

See you in about a month!

This is part of a series, “Hannah’s Journey to be Happy.” The last piece is listed below: