A Dream Come True

Wanda had always loved watching birds. She was amazed that almost all birds could fly. She felt sorry for the ones that couldn’t. What was the point of wings if not for flying?

One night, at a carnival, Wanda and some of her friends went into a booth to have their fortunes told. As Wanda placed her palm into the hands of the exotic fortune-teller, the woman tilted her head and looked at Wanda with a mysterious glint in her eye.

“Tonight, I will tell your fortune for free,” she informed Wanda, “because yours is quite fascinating.” Wanda listened intently as the fortune-teller continued. “For one night only, your life will change dramatically. You will finally be given what you have wished for your entire life, but the gift is fleeting. Enjoy it while it lasts.”

The fortune-teller dropped Wanda’s hand and then looked exhausted. She told the others to come back later. She claimed she was too exhausted to read any more fortunes that night.

Wanda and her friends all laughed at the dramatic way the fortune teller had acted around her, and they teased Wanda the rest of the night, asking her over and over what she most wanted. Wanda laughed along with them, but she couldn’t help but wonder if something might happen.

That night, when Wanda finally began to fall asleep, she started to feel a tingling in her toes. She thought perhaps they were falling asleep, but then the tingling moved up her entire body. She suddenly had the strongest feeling that she could fly. She rose from the bed and began to move her arms. Sure enough, she could fly just like one of the birds she had so often admired. She did not hesitate, remembering the fortune-teller’s words that the gift would not last for long. She went outside and began to fly. She spent hours traveling through the air. She never thought to call anyone else for fear it would end her gift. Finally, exhausted, she collapsed on her bed and fell into a deep sleep.

When she woke the next morning, the magical feeling was gone, and she could no longer fly. She wouldn’t have even believed it had happened at all if it weren’t for the open window she saw in her bedroom.