The Wishing Tree (1): A Destiny City Star Festival Tradition to be held every year; In Town Square, there is a beautiful tree with spreading branches. It is tall, but the lowest branches are easily reached. The city has decorated the tree with small, starlike ornaments and glistening lights. Thick leaves and beautiful purple flowers dangle from the branches, along with a myriad of different colored papers with handwritten wishes. Next to the tree is a stack of blank paper with twine attached, and a handwritten sign that explains:

Write your wish on a sheet of paper and tie it to the tree. Take one wish off the tree and do your best to grant it. When you have granted the wish, bury the paper in the park.

The papers are biodegradable and filled with seeds. There are no rules for wishing, but you are encouraged to wish for something vague enough that it can be interpreted in many ways so that it can be granted; you do not write your name on it, but it is encouraged to write something that doesn’t wish for self gain, but rather something that can make the world a better place. Some wishes dangling from the tree already include things like “I wish there wasn’t so much litter in the park,” “I wish someone would clean the graffiti off the old historic buildings,” and “I wish there were more volunteers at the shelter.”

If you choose to use the Wishing Tree, what do you wish for? If your wish is private, you may write it on the paper and choose a spot in the park and bury it yourself instead of hanging it on the tree.


Sabrina was very interested in the whole idea of the wishing tree. It seemed amazing to Sabrina that simply writing your wish down and either putting it on the tree or burying it in the park could make it come true. She liked the idea of having something tangible to do in order to make her wish come true. So today her only goal was to visit the wishing tree! She wasn't willing to let any of the other wonderful StarFest events deter her today. Sabrina entered the park with a sense of excitement and anticipation. She was finally here to make her wish come true. Taking a deep breath, she made her way to the wishing tree.

As soon as she got to the wishing tree she was amazed at how the tree was covered with so many wishes. They were a sight to be seen as they hung from the tree. It was a magical moment all in its own. It was a moment she would never forget. All the wishes were so unique and represented the hopes, dreams, and aspirations of those who left them behind. It was a reminder that anything was possible if you just believed. Believing was something she really loved to do, since it could make all the difference in the moment.

As she was almost distracted by the wishes on the tree she noticed a table next to the tree. It said start here! So she made her way to the table and noticed some biodegradable papers filled with seeds in a basket. They also had two other baskets one with string and one with pens to write your wishes. She picked up one of the papers and immediately began writing her wishes. Or she would have started, but then she realized she was drawing a blank. What did she want to wish for? She thought back, and back. The hotel was going wonderfully, her friends were doing well, she was getting stronger. Did she really have anything to wish for? Then it hit her as she remembered that time in Halloween when her gravestone had no start date. It was like the stone couldn't figure out the time she was in do to something blocking it. That was when she remembered it felt like she had lost a year at one point, but somehow her parents and the whole hotel was business as usual. But she always felt like something had gone wrong at some point, no matter how far she pushed it away. She realized that she had a wish after all, a wish to know what had happened that year. She knew there was something out there that could answer her questions. She just had to find it.

So she quickly wrote her wish on the paper - I wish to find my lost time or some clue to what happened during it. As she finished writing her wish she knew it would not be an easy one to grant, but that was okay. Even if no one granted it, she now had a goal, something she didn't have until now. She had been so focused on everything else she had forgotten that there was time missing at all. Which to some might not seem strange but to her it wasn't something she wanted. Since to her time was precious and she wanted to remember all of it. No matter how dark or happy they were, she wanted to remember all the times in her life. She quickly replaced the pen, and with that thought in her head she headed towards the tree.

Once she arrived she found a lower branch and turned to open her bat backpack. Sabrina had brought her own string so she was thankful that she didn't have to pick any from that basket. After all with all the craft stuff she had at home she had a bit to spare. From her bag, she picked out the most beautiful ribbon with bats and ghosts on it. She brought it because she thought she might need it even though it turned out she didn't. She carefully tied the wish she wrote on a piece of paper to the tree's branches. Her wish stuck out like a sore thumb with the bats and ghost, but she really didn't mind. Since it was literally perfect for her and her wish. After all her wish was a little spooky. Lost time? What could be spookier than that? She thought with a laugh. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and silently made a wish for herself. 'I wish that I will find the answer,' she spoke in her head as she opened her eyes and smiled, feeling hopeful and content.

She was sure the answer to her question was somewhere out there, she just needed to find it. She was confident she would find it soon, and with that thought she turned away, ready to go on her journey. But what that journey was she had no idea. All she knew right now was she needed to work on her goal to find her lost time. She took a deep breath and set off, determined to find what she was looking for. She was sure she would find the answers eventually, and she was ready for the challenge ahead. She was excited, feeling a sense of adventure and anticipation for what was to come.

First things first though she needed to head home and begin the research. Since with home many photos her and her family takes, if there is a time where there are no photos maybe that would be a place to start investigating. She thought it would be a good idea to look through the photos and see if there were any patterns or anomalies that could be useful for her investigation. She was excited to get started and wanted to make sure she had all the information she needed to get the answers she was looking for. So with that she raced home and was eager to begin her search for answers!

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