I don’t know what it is about ‘wishing wells’ and why many folks like to have them. I don’t know why they are called ‘wishing wells.’
Why would people make wishes upon a well when there are hardly any wells around? And who is supposed to be granting the wishes in the first place?
So I did a little research. I found out that a ‘wishing well’ is a term from European folklore to describe a well where it was thought that any spoken wish to it would be granted. This came from the idea that water, being the source of life, housed deities that would grant someone’s wish if he/she paid a price. And after uttering the wish, one would generally drop coins into the well.
And since there are no wells around, you see many folks toss coins in water fountains and in ponds, uttering wishes, hoping that their wishes would be granted. But still, I don’t believe that making a wish on wishing wells would make my wishes come true.
When my sons were little boys, they had asked me for coins to throw into fountains. And with lips muttering their wishes, they tossed the coins into the water. Who told them about ‘wishing fountains’? I know I didn’t.
In November 2006, the “Fountain Money Mountain” reported that tourists threw just under 6 million dollars per year into wishing wells and wishing fountains.
My husband JR loves novelty items, especially for our garden. Items such as wrought-iron bicycle planters, iron buckets, arbors and bird baths are his favorite ones. So, when we went to the store and he pointed to the garden center, I knew he would be looking for some rustic items he could add to his collection.
I stood from a distance and watched him check out the many types of water fountains. There were big ones and small ones. After his third round, he seemed to be drawn to a three-foot “wishing well.” He looked at the boxes down below but couldn’t find the particular fountain in a box. He circled the aisle one more time, checking every box, but the only “wishing well” left was the one on display. The wishing well looked as if it was a ‘returned’ or ‘used’ item.
“Like that one, huh? Looks like you’ll have to buy the display. What if it doesn’t work?” I asked.
He shrugged his shoulders then picked up the ‘wishing well’ fountain with both hands. I followed him to the counter. I could sense his excitement even though he had doubts that the pump may not work.
Our hunch that the ‘wishing well’ wasn’t working became apparent when we noticed dry dirt stuck in the bottom of the well. As if it was once bought, used, and returned. I could tell the disappointment in J.R.’s eyes.
“If it doesn’t work, I’ll replace the pump,” he whispered to me. “I still want it!”
First, he asked the saleslady if there are other new ‘wishing wells’ in the back. We were told all the ‘wishing wells’ were bought within hours, except the one on display. She wasn’t sure if it worked, for it has been sitting there for a long time. J.R. asked if he could plug it in to see if the pump worked. The saleslady left and came back with a bucket of water.
All eyes watch as the ‘wishing well’ was filled with water and plugged into a socket. Nothing! No pumping sound. No movement of water. I looked at J.R. and without wasting a second, he said, “I still want it! If nothing else I can make a planter out of it!” The saleslady sold it for $15 (regular price was $75).
After J.R. bought a new pump, we took our prized possession home. JR washed the mud off the bottom part, replaced the pump, and plugged it in. The pump started to hum, the water splashed, the little brown bucket on top of the well started dripping. Our wishing well started working! We both laughed.
Today the ‘wishing well’ sits near a plant with a ‘WELCOME’ sign. We don’t throw coins into it for wishes. We just want it because it’s pretty. And as proud owners, we watch it in delight.
I could compare the ‘wishing well’ to a poor, down-trodden soul, broken in spirit, seemingly useless and hopeless in man’s eyes. But God takes one look at that broken soul and then say, “Sold! I want him! I’ve paid for him with My Blood. Even if no one wants him, he is Mine! I am taking him home with Me.” Then He puts in that person a new heart and His Holy Spirit.
1 Corinthians 6:20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.