My wishes on a lucky clover

A six-year-old boy in Europe found a five-leaf clover in 2016.

I know this sounds like a column for St. Patrick’s Day that’s really early in printing, but it’s not. I swear.

I was just thinking about my reaction if I ever found a five- or even a four-leaf clover.

First, a four-leaf clover is a rare find. It’s a natural mutation in the growth of clover, and I’m sure many of you out there have stories of trying to find one.

I would always search for them in the outfield during summer ball games that my little league team was playing in. I wasn’t really a sports girl, but those outfields were some prime clover spots to search through.

However, I never found any clover that had more than three leaves. That’s probably because the odds weren’t in my favor.

From my research, a person only has a 1 in 10,000 chance of finding a four-leaf clover.

That’s already pretty rare, and it’s considered a symbol of good luck if you find it.

The odds of finding a five-leaf clover, like the boy in Europe, are even slimmer. A person has a 1 in 1,000,000 chance of finding one.

A five-leaf clover is an even stronger symbol of good luck and good fortune. Yes, I’m talking money.

When this little boy found his five-leaf clover, he did something interesting. He made a wish.

This little boy’s wish was for the Queen of England to have immortality.

He had been learning about her and her then-upcoming 90th birthday in his classes.

I think that’s sweet despite the fact that it is an impossible wish. Still, it was made on a nearly-impossible-to-find plant, so take that into consideration.

I’m not sure how frequent the practice is to wish on an allegedly lucky clover, but I imagine if I only had moments to think of a wish, I would probably not think of another person.

I think I, as would any other human who would decide to wish on a clover, would probably go through a list similar to this: more money, better things, more time, less stress, etc., etc., etc.

While these things aren’t bad, I think it’s important to remember that there are others who have worse situations, and even if you continue to think of wishes for yourself, I don’t think you should focus on material things.

Of course, I can say that all day long. It’s a matter of whether I follow my own words, that’s the point.

After I read the story of the boy making a simple wish for another person (who may wish she could retire), I wanted to make a list of things I should wish for if I ever find my own four- or five-leaf clover.

First, I should wish for more smiles.

There’s really no reason for this wish other than people don’t smile enough anymore, in my opinion.

Second, I should wish for more cake, and I mean cake that everyone can eat and be happy eating.

Cake is a special thing, and I know it’s somewhat material. However, I think there are a lot of memories attached to cake. There are birthday cakes and wedding cakes. There are cakes made by moms and cakes bought from the store.

We don’t just make a cake to make a cake. We typically make a cake for special reasons, making the food so much more important.

My favorite memories of eating cake are going to family reunions or Christmas celebrations and eating my great-grandmother’s – my aunts may have actually made it – seven-layer chocolate cake. I remember being happy and running around, not having a care in the world.

Plus, I was smiling a lot.

Third, and probably last for this column, I would wish for more handshakes and hugs.

Obviously, people would need to wash their hands first, since it’s flu season and all, but I think handshakes and hugs show that people are connecting on some level.

Handshakes usually come with eye contact, so for at least a second or two, a person doesn’t get to overlook the other person in the exchange.

Hugs are even better because they can bring comfort and kindness to people who may not even realize they need it.

I mean, who doesn’t love a hug, especially if it comes from someone like mom or grandma?

So, those are just three things I would wish for. Sure, they sound idealistic, and some people like pie over cake, but these are what I would wish for.

What would you wish for?

Cassie Gibbs is a staff writer for The Southeast Sun and Daleville Sun-Courier. The opinions of this writer are her own and not the opinion of the paper. She can be reached at (334) 393-2969 or by email at [email protected].