If Wishes Were Horses...

Reference: The first variation of this appeared in 1605—“If wishes were thrushes, beggars would eat birds.” No doubt this is meaningless unless you know what “thrushes” are (they’re migratory songbirds, by the way). The term is now widely known, so one need only say “If wishes were horses,” and the rest is implied.

This is the modern version:

“If wishes were horses

Beggars would ride:

If turnips were watches

I would wear one by my side.”

Or perhaps you’ve heard: “Wish in one hand and shit in another and see which one fills up quicker.” That’s the Americanized version of the old English proverb. Sweet, no? The point is shit is more tangible than a wish. But wishing, for this blog at least, is where it all began. For those of you just tuning in, I started this project to explore a personal obsession: Star Trek. I’m hoping (not wishing) to find something tangible in the imaginary world of Trek that I can apply to my life. So far, I think we’ve made progress. We’ve got the baseball-as-life analogy, the not-so-logical logic of the Looking Glass, and a fair amount of Babel. I think (and feel free to weigh in here) we’re making progress. 3-0. Good. I like winning.

Out of curiosity, I googled “wishing.” Wikipedia popped up immediately with a definition (thanks for nothing, Merriam-Webster). Second link, Wishing.com—For a Better life – penis enlargement. Third hit, “a wish could be a curse. Is the wish close to the curse. The wish, as far as I know, must not be said outloud.” I have no idea what the latter is about. Me? I’ve always believed that wishing never changed a damn thing. I don't need google to tell me that everyone is just as skeptical. In this week’s episode, wishing changes everything. Aliens (of course!) come to DS9 masquerading as the crew’s wishes. Our good Dr. Bashir, ever fantasizing and fawning over Dax, finds himself with a Dax who cannot keep her hands of him. It’s an entertaining episode really, but I’m not sure of what substance it’s made. Perhaps that’s the point though. Perhaps it’s not the fact that wishing is futile and pointless. Perhaps wishing is an imaginative exercise that provides a way of thinking outside our boxes. For example, I wish…no, wait. Wishes aren’t meant to be shared, so you’ll have to finish that sentence for yourself. And no, I did not wish for Star Trek to be continued in a 6^th series or for Robert Greene to go back in time and stop that US goal (though I am still dwelling on it, to be honest).

Wishing is worth more than a handful of shit. We wish to imagine alternate realities for ourselves. For a few moments, our wish relieves the every day dirge and we are far and away in a reality we can control and isn’t that what we all want? If this week’s episode proved anything, it’s that wishing can alter your present reality in profound and incalculable ways. I read an article (which I’m not going to provide a link to and thereby break blogging/tech-cult etiquette) about how people stop wishing as they grow older. Yeah, we wish the line wasn’t so long at the bank or for a big gob of money, but the big wishes, the I-wish-I-had-cool-super-powers type wishes or the I-wish-I-could-explore-the-stars, these are the stuff of imagination, the stuff of childhood. Maybe this episode is encouraging us to imagine more. Wish like a kid. I do. Or, if you lack imagination and need some suggestions, you can always check out Skee-Lo’s “I Wish” music video (1995) for ideas.

Next up: Star Trek: Voyager’s “Tsunkatse” feat. The Rock (yes, The Rock). Check out this snippet with The Rock vs. Seven of Nine:

Hailing frequencies closed.