She plonked on the chair with her gaze fixed on the array of colourful and appealing craft and stationery items scattered across the table. The manifest image in her mind was soon going to be given a form by her tiny but deft hands.

In the following three hours, there were several moments when I literally had my mouth agape with incredulity. I was witness to the display of exquisite craftsmanship by my 5-year-old as she created a wonder out of the ordinary, ably supported by her creative Nani.

“Look Mumma, my unicorn crown is ready!”, she exclaimed after keeping her nose to grindstone for a long duration like never before. “I wish I could meet a unicorn”, she added. As I enveloped her in my motherly embrace, I chuckled and reminded her that unicorns don’t exist. There was a pregnant pause, heralding a realisation was on the way.

“I know Mumma that they are not real but I can still wish to meet one, no?”, she declared with a sincere sparkle in her eyes. After uttering these words, she scurried to the other room to show the crown to her Nanu, unaware of the fact that she had left me with fodder for reflection. I thought to myself, how right she was!

Does it matter if wishes could come true or not? If feasibility becomes the criteria to consider wishes as valid, the very essence in which they are rooted is lost. How many times do we wish for something and sigh at the preposterous idea? How many times do we mock our own yearnings because being a grown-up warrants us to be pragmatic and mature? How many times do we push ourselves to snap out of our dreamland only to plummet into the real world with a thud?

I, for one, was reminded by my daughter about those thousands of wishes that lay crammed in the box of adulthood. I know I cannot fly with the birds. I am fully cognizant of the fact that I cannot go on a long vacation around the world with my family. I possibly may not be able to do a cartwheel ever. But, that’s how wishes are meant to be. Inane and unrealistic and fantasied; also beautiful and unfettering and soothing. We don’t need to apply conditions of fulfilment and limit our wishes. While we are living the reality, we can also dream our dreams. While we are chasing defined goals, we can also run after flying carpets. While we are busy ticking away our bucket lists, we can also create our wishlists.

More often than not, children impart us the best life lessons oblivious to their own wisdom. So, next time my daughter shares one of her wishes with me, I am not going to remind her of its improbability. Rather, I will share my wish with her too. Maybe, we would then laugh together. Maybe, we would fancy them together. For sure, we would create a special moment together.

Kyunki hazaron khwahishen aisi, ki har khawahish sach ko khoobsurat banaata hai!