Wish Wish

Wish Wish is a feeling…

of grandpa’s church festivals with games that rewarded you with little plastic trinkets.  At a time when Cracker Jacks had halfway decent prizes hidden inside the box.  At a time when a dollar would buy you a couple of games and a ride in the makeshift midway.  These were my first lessons in budgeting.

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One year, one blessed year, the Queen of Peace Church festival had pony rides.  This would be the benchmark by which all other church festivals would be judged. Ponies, tethered to a center post, walking in a circle on an asphalt church parking lot, in the heart of Milwaukee.

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It would cost me my whole dollar.

It would be worth it.