Wish

I told him I needed time—

he gave me a cuckoo clock

(I couldn’t work the winding key)

I told him I needed space—

he gave me a telescope

(or make the moon look back at me)

I told him I needed change—

he gave me a penny jar

(or stop from spending every cent)

I told him I needed more—

he led me to the well

(or count up every wish I’d spent)

Now I have so much time,

the cuckoo’s flown away

(the moon’s a clock that’s come unwound)

Now I have so much space,

it’s night for days on end

(the moon’s a shadow on the ground)

Now I have so much change,

the well’s just one more wish

(the moon’s a coin the well has drowned)

This poem appeared in The Yale Review, Volume 105, No. 4, October 2017.

10.09.2026

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