All In A Day's Wish.

He had everything. Which is to say he truly had nothing. 

No empathy. No gratitude. No self awareness or perspective, save his own echo chamber of desire. 

That's the problem with unearned wisdom, it makes you ignore the real world consequences from one's myopic, self-righteous actions. 

For him however, his eyes were finally opened to the truth of his life time of easy living and apathy, coupled with bad decisions; in the end he knew his mistakes had cost him and others, quite a toll, leading him to his end... 

Or shall we endeavor to say the beginning?

***

He looked down at the slip in his right hand, checking the date:

'All returns must be made within 7 days after purchase for full refund.' 

'Of course,' he thought cynically. 

Funny enough, he didn't 'actually' purchase the item, rather it was bestowed upon him. His friends and family called him 'Lucky' because he was always stumbling into some type of fortunate misfortune. 

And this time was no different.

It didn't matter what the return date was anyways... he never got a chance to use the item in the first place, because he was dead. Forever a victim of unintended consequences. His Luck had officially run out. 

In his post mortem, a revelation came to him. A revelation of a lifetime habitually spent in fits of indecisiveness and fear of failure; waiting for the perfect moment to act, the perfect plan, the perfect situation to apply an easy fix with the blink of an eye and a snap of the fingers. He spent his whole life trying to strike it rich without effort and in reality, got nothing. 

Only this time it came with a stroke of finality. 

You see, Lucky always feared what if something went wrong? And if something was to go wrong, not only would it simply go wrong, would it go wrong in the worst way? As his whole life experience had taught him from his early childhood interactions, often leaving him quite indecisive in virtually every moment of decision and action. Hence the nickname. So when he stumbled upon the Eternal Spirit of Wish Fulfilling Jewel in an antique shop going out of business, that was the first thing that came to mind: What could go wrong here?

The antique shop was something of a refuge for Lucky in times of distress and discomfort. In between the shop's cluttered shelves and aisles crammed full of smelly old books, broken furniture from eras bygone, VHS tapes layered with allergy inducing dust that hadn't been touched since they arrived, every now and then one can find a hidden gem suitable for your second hand collection of unusual treasures. A place where he resigned himself to distraction from the outside world.

Lucky found himself there earlier in the week searching for a good replacement for his 'own' lucky charm which he had foolishly lost in a bet; a miniature hourglass necklace. He got it at a pawn shop ages ago. 

What drove him into looking for a replacement was the fact that, he could feel his own luck running out. Like oxygen being sucked out of room. He needed a new charm and fast.

He swore by the use of a good luck charm and its perceived effectiveness that in all the times he had need for it, his luck improved. For Lucky was a devout believer in all manner of superstitions, omens, and not to mention, Astrology charts. Firmly believing that success in life was all about how luck a person got. So he continued to always find ways of so-called 'improving' his luck. However dubious it might be in doing so. 

He spent his entire life trying to improve his own luck, by any means. Committing to all manner of rituals and avoidance of real work unless it benefitted him more, and outrightly dodged responsibility where needed. He remained steadfast in his superstitious belief in the sense that if he could get his one big break, then maybe he could actually look out for someone other than himself for once. But until then, it was better that he kept numero uno ahead of everything else. Otherwise why risk his luck helping someone else out?

***

Dismayed that his place of comfort would soon perish, only to become another Starbucks; Lucky was at a loss from surveying the usual odds and ends of interesting trinkets. All so much without finding a suitable replacement for his good luck charm. An unlucky omen in itself he thought, as he stumbled upon an ornate wooden box with faded inscriptions and images similar to Egyptian Hieroglyphs. Not recalling in his previous visits having ever seen the mysterious box, he opened it. What lay inside was a dark, circular, object in the nestled on top of a velvet covered cushion.

Reaching in to examine it further, the jewel had a likeness of a magic 8-ball, but with an opaque surface and a milky, deep blue, fluid swirling gently inside. He shook it, looking for the trademark triangle with all but generic, anything but specific, words of wisdom. 

Instead what happened, a faint glow appeared from within the orb and words materialized in a thin band around the center of the 8-ball that read: "One wish to be granted, one wish to return, one wish give, and in the end one wish to give."

Giving him a vague impression of Lord of The Rings no doubt. Another sneaking suspicion that something was aloof.

Then a soundless and cloudy mixture of vapor seeped from within the jewel in his hands, giving off the faint scent of frankincense and myrrh. Then suddenly appearing before him in full regalia was an old man towering above him, wearing a black turtleneck sweater, dad jeans, sneakers, and modern designer eyeglasses, while sporting a clipboard and giving off the impression of a hip Mr. Rogers. 

***

"Uhhh." Lucky mumbled, half startled, half surprised at what he was seeing. 

"It's good to see you kid," the figure said in a smooth, soft spoken, therapist like tone. "Now we don't have a lot of time here to spend on pleasantries, so what do you want and what are you willing to give up to get it?" Said the apparition floating before him in the vapor. 

"Who.. Who are you?" Lucky asked. Still in shock from this paranormal experience taking place.

"Not too bright on the uptick I see. It happens more than I would like." Said the spirit while making a note on the clipboard he held in his hand, murmuring: "You'd think by now they would be used to events like this happening..."

"Okay." he said looking up from the clipboard, "I'm the Eternal Spirit of the Wish Fulfilling Jewel. And if you still don't know what that means after reading my business card on the outside of my 8-ball you were just holding, I'm here to grant you a wish so I can get back to finishing my reports from wishes made in the past five centuries. Now, what do you want?"

"Okay Mr. Spirit, what do I have to do, and what is it exactly that I have to give up?" he asked. 

Contrived to go over the long history of wish granting and wish fulfilling, the jewel's spirit proceeded to explain to him the pros and cons of wish making. And how through the ages countless others had gone from seeking to make their life better through making a wish, into a complete travesty in most cases, all due to not comprehending the rules. 

Once the Eternal Spirit finished relaying all of the end user licence agreement subsections, Lucky came to his decision after a few more moments of pondering his wish:

"What if it were impossible to fail?" That was what he asked, what he wished for, by the Eternal Spirit of the Wish Fulfilling Jewel. Wishing that everything he imagined to do would be easy and that he could fail at nothing. Not knowing the true cost of what he was giving up in exchange for his foolish wish. He wanted an infinite amount of luck. 

But then, one thing he couldn't foresee struck him... What would he try to accomplish first? If the whole world was an open oyster to his demands, what should he try his hand at first?

Should he attempt to stop all crime?

Find the cure for cancer?

Play slots at the casino?

Put an end to world hunger?

These and other potential problems to be solved bubbled to the surface of his mind, all of them tantalizing, all of them seemingly just as important as the next issue which he could solve. For the first time in his life, he thought about others, only for his own selfish ends. He could even sell his services if he wanted to and charge people to fix their problems for them and... viola! 

So he sat, and he thought pondered hard and long on what to do first.

Eventually he fell asleep right in the shop. And subsequently died before he ever set forth in righting the world's wrongs.

***

And so he floated there in the ether. Like a photographic negative he bore witness to the passage of time outside of himself. Torture plagued both him and the world as he saw it slowly descend into chaos over the years

Lost in a spirit of brokenness. 

He was saddened and angered by his indecisiveness in life. Always assuming everything to just... happen. His inadvertent nature to avoid consequence had finally caught up with him right as he found the one solution to solving his problem. Bad luck indeed. 

A lifetime spent living off the benefits of those around him. 

Every decision changing the trajectory of his life with an atmosphere of comfort.

Never once understanding or realizing the 'real way' to improve the world. That improving the world is never ending. It's tough and requires real work. It never happens all at once. 

***

After a time he heard a voice. 

"Do you see. Do you see it now?" Came the familiar voice of the Eternal Jewel's Spirit, manifesting before Lucky's eyes. While they glimpsed at a timelapse of the world going by around them. "Am I... How did I...die?" He asked the spirit. "It matters not. What's done is done. You had your wish to do some good in the world and you failed."

"Failed?" he asked incredulous, "But my wish was supposed to prevent all of this/that. How could I have? I made a promise I would put my wish to the betterment of everyone around me."

"But did you? Did you help anyone, did you look out for your community, your friends, your family? No. You squandered your time in only fantasizing about how you would help, and in the end helped no one actually."

Lucky continued to peer out into the world revolving around him as the calamity continued to spread. Wars. Famines. Environmental destruction, the usual. The sun continued to crawl over the horizon as if to run away from the darkening skies and the moon following it.

All the while, ensuing motion in the heavens and earth as people scattered about like ants in the dirt, and from the passing of the ages: cities came and went, landscapes grew and shrunk, only to become barren once again, and nations waged ceaseless wars. And it all could have been prevented by Lucky's wishes.

***

"How can I fix this?" He pleaded looking to the spirit. "If I knew I could not fail, I’d have spent less time daydreaming about success and more time living it. I wasted so much of my time avoiding my fate."

"Would you have really?" It asked. 

"Yes." I would do anything it required. 

"Well then, if you truly mean that I will grant you a second chance to make things right. I can allow you to return to the mortal realm in exchange for you taking my place when you die. What say you then?"

Astounded at the offer, he was at a loss for words. "I mean... how would I... How would I even know what to do in your place?" He asked incredulously. 

"In due time." He assured. 

Somethings are so simple, but impossible to explain. He thought. And in a bright flash of light and a return of that sharp scent. Lucky could feel the life coming back into his senses as he heard those words. Feeling his mind expanding as it broke the chains of the illusion of failure he so long believed. Encountering a new vitality in his body and fire in his soul.

Once the Eternal Spirit had vanished, he found himself somewhere outside of the shop, with the box and receipt in his hands. Which at a second glance, the shop seemed to have changed its appearance altogether from the street where it resided. He didn't spend too much time thinking on it as he went inside.

***

"I need to return this." He said to the person behind the counter.  

"Oh yeah, why?" said the bored store clerk with an air of annoyance.

"I've realized I'm better off without such a thing. And for another... it was more trouble than what it's worth." Putting the old box with the jewel inside on top the counter and handing over the receipt. 

"Hmm.." he mumbled fixing his gaze on the paper. "It says here you're a day late for any refunds. Sorry."

"I'm not looking for my money back. I got what I needed out of it." Turning his back on what was nothing more than the experience of a lifetime. "I've had enough to do with wishes."

"Good Luck with this place." he said stepping through the door, ready to prove himself to the world.