The following is the opinion and analysis of the writer:
Just a little hope.
A bit of peace.
A smattering of kindness.
That’s what I'm wishing for this year.
And I’m not the only one.
Last year, 32,628 people stood in my front yard. They came to make a wish on our tree, known as the Wishing Tree - Tucson. And many of them wished for the same thing.
The tree is nothing special, really, other than a bright spot of green in our otherwise dry, desert town. There are others just like it in our neighborhood, called “Winterhaven.”
But what makes our tree different is that it offers a bit of hope to those who visit it during the two weeks of the Winterhaven Festival each year. And it has for over 25 years.
People are also reading…
As visitors approach the tree, most know it’s silly to imagine stapling a piece of paper to a tree could really change anything. And yet, so often, it does.
Sometimes it’s as simple as a child wishing for a special doll and the parent, looking over her shoulder, spies which one. Those are the easier wishes to believe might come true.
Wishing tree
It’s the wishes made by the adults that are tougher.
“A baby, please.”
“A boyfriend that won’t cheat on me!”
“A job so I can feed my family.”
“For my daughter to forgive me. I miss her so.”
“Money for my grandfather’s cancer treatment.”
Those wishes are harder.
However, often their writing spurs action. And we later hear the tales of how their lives changed only after making the wish. Those stories are what keep the tree, and us, going year after year.
Every four years, the wishes reveal society’s divisions.
“I wish for a new president! Now!”
“That I don’t get picked up by La Migra. I don’t know anyone where I was born 20 years ago.”
“For our great president to have a third term!”
“No border wall.”
Watching the hordes of strangers, standing shoulder to shoulder, helping each other find a place to attach a wish or unjam a stapler, it’s hard to imagine they are political enemies. If they only knew…
But that’s the thing. They don’t.
More often, the wishes reveal our commonalities. What we all want, no matter our views.
“Peace for our planet.”
“For my kids to live a happy and productive life.”
“For no child to ever go hungry.”
“Love.”
After 25 years of peering out my front window, what I’ve come to realize is that our tree isn’t really about the wishes. It’s about the wishers.
It’s people deciding what one thing they care enough about to write down on a piece of paper that probably no one will ever read.
And realizing it’s that important to them.
The writing of it changes them somehow. When they walk away, they feel more at peace. It’s out there in the universe now.
For one night, the people who visit the tree all believe.
It shows we can work together for a common purpose- even something as simple as placing a strip of paper onto a tree. That’s magic.
And the thousands who come each night prove we still want to believe there is something better out there for each of us. That’s hope.
My wish is that this year, we can commit to making something better for all of us.
I think the tree would agree.
Big changes start with small wishes.
Make yours now and do one thing today to start making it happen.
Or come visit the tree in person.
I hope all of your wishes come true.
Kathleen Bethel is local writer. She and her family are the guardians of the Wishing Tree in Tucson, AZ. https://www.wishingtree-tucson.com/
