If you had one wish for Christmas, what would you wish for? Money, fame, a new car? Well I had a friend who had such a wish, and what he wished for, that was a miracle in itself.

Today's a foggy day, I've never seen it like this before, Jamane thought to himself as he stepped on the small beach of Ely's Harbour. Since it was winter and nobody liked to be there, Jamane thought he would go and clear his head in peace.

He was a young black male, just turned twenty-one, lived on his own, had trouble finding a job after being fired from BTC two weeks earlier and Christmas coming made it even worse. Rent was due, his gold digger girlfriend was on his case about money every day and he had just found out his father, who he never met, passed away three days before. After sitting for about an hour thinking about what he could do he came up with nothing and then decided to stand by the water and let the mist hit his face.

Suddenly a shiny silver thing appeared in the water. He reached down and picked it up.

This is pretty he thought, maybe I can sell it and make a little money. Just then an old man in rags with a weird scent appeared out of the fog.

“You have a very special gift in your hand,” the old man said.

“Yeah, well not for long. I'm going to sell it,” Jamane replied.

“But you can't sell what's not yours.”

Jamane looked him up and down and laughed. “I guess you're going to tell me it's yours, well finder's keepers dogg.”

Then Jamane turned to leave.

“Wait,” the man yelled. “No I'm not going to tell you that, but what I am going to tell you is, the object you hold is magic for it will grant you one wish”

“Be real. You mean to tell me that this piece of metal will grant me one wish? What do you think it is? I found it and I am going to sell it.” Jamane said.

“I know this is real life, that is the gift of the sea given to one person every one-hundred years, and it found you, you didn't find it. I'm the messenger of the sea, when it finds its recipient I give them the rules,” the old man answered.

“What kind of messenger are you? Look at you in your old rags, you stink, you look like you don't have any riches. What type of magic can it really bring me? I'm going to sell it.”

“I'll give you a pre-wish, something you can see so you'll believe it, but whatever it is it will disappear in seconds, so just wish something out of the blue,” the old man spoke.

“Well I wish this beach would turn into money.”

Just at that moment the ground beneath shook and turned right into cash. Jamane was so excited as he reached for some it disappeared.

“Hey, what good is a wish that only last a couple seconds?” he asked.

“That was a pre-wish just so you'll believe it but you can't make the real wish until two days before Christmas,” explained the old man. “You can't wish for someone's death or to bring someone back from the dead. So think very carefully about your wish, take your time because you only get one, and it's Christmas so I advise you not to just think about yourself.”

Moments later the old man disappeared into the sea. Jamane stood in shock for a minute then jumped up and down in excitement. I'm going to wish for one-hundred million dollars he thought. He ran to Market Place to call his girlfriend Christal on the payphone, being as his cell had been turned off and the Market Place was closer than home. He was so excited to tell her about his Christmas wish.

“Hello” she answered.

“Christal you'll never guess what happened to me toda...” He had been cut off.

“Where have you been? I've been waiting for you all day, I need some money to get my hair and nails done and for my phone bill,” she exclaimed.

“Baby, listen! I found this thing on the beach today, and this man who's the messenger of the sea and it'll grant me one wish for Christmas, and I'm going to wish for one-hundred million dollars and then we will be set for life,” he explained.

“What are you talking about, you sound like a five year old believing a drunk old man who said he can grant you a wish from a piece of trash you found on the ground. You need help, money and now a new girl, because I'm leaving you and finding me a real man with a job and money.” And she hung up.

He left the store feeling down. He decided to go home. On his way he saw his friend Karen, a girl he knew from school, sitting with some children from the day care she worked at. He spoke to her and went on his way.

If only I had enough guts to ask her out in school maybe my life would be different, he thought.

As he walked home he looked around and saw different kinds of people, some poor with no place to live, some drunks with no goals, and some that just didn't seem to care about anything at all. He started to think about where he would classify himself and he realised he didn't know what he was all about. When he arrived home he thought about what the man at the beach had said and eventually went to sleep.

It was 10 a.m. when he finally awoke, so he got ready and left. He was going to the day-care centre to ask Karen out to dinner. When he got there he saw her playing tag with the children. She eventually saw him and asked another worker to take over.

“Hi,” she said in confusion as she walked over to him “Are you looking for someone?”

“Just you” he replied, “I wanted to know if you would go to dinner with me.”

“What about Christal?” she asked.

“We aren't together anymore, I lost my job and she wants a man to support her high maintenance,” he explained.

“No, if you don't have a job I don't want you taking me out to dinner,” she said.

“Oh,” he said in disappointment.

“But you can take me to the Christmas Boat Parade and I'll take you to dinner after,” she said with a smile.

“It's a date and I'll pick you at seven,” he said as he left.

All week he was so excited and when Saturday came he got to Karen's house at 7. p.m. like he said. She was waiting on her porch.

“You're ten seconds late,” she said laughing as she got on his bike.

They got into town just as the boats were passing the harbour.

“I love watching these boats,” Karen whispered, “and everyone's having a good time and enjoying life.”

At dinner Jamane decided to tell Karen what had happened at the beach. After he finished he waited for her to laugh.

“That's amazing, I hope you don't waste your wish,” she said.

“No way, I'm going to wish for one-hundred million dollars then I will be able to take you on trips and give you whatever you want, that is if you like me like that, you know to be my girl,” he said nervously.

“I do like you like that but I don't need trips and those kinds of things all I need is love and time, but how can you only think about yourself after you get such a great opportunity,” she answered.

With that they finished their meal and left. When the got to Karen's House she got off his bike and looked at him.

“Look, I didn't mean to offend you at dinner, it's just that you have the chance to do something to help more than yourself,” she told him.

She hugged him, thanked him for the night and went in.

The day of his big wish he called Karen and asked if she would go to the beach with him. So later that day they both went. The old man was waiting for him.

“Well are you ready?” asked the man.

Jamane nodded.

“Well hold the gift in your right hand and repeat this, “Oh great sea who gave me this wish, I wish for...” the man told him.

“I was going to wish for one-hundred million dollars but I really though about what someone I cared about told me so, Oh great sea who gave me this wish, I wish for everyone in Bermuda to have a warm safe place to stay, plenty of food and people to love them without the need of drugs,” Jamane said.

Just then a light so beautiful shone on the sea an the man replied: “Your wish have been granted.”

Karen was so proud of him she kissed him. Just then the old man interrupted, “Since your wish was unselfish you will be given one more wish to be used on yourself.”

Jamane held the gift in his right hand again and said, “Oh great sea who gave me this wish, I wish for”

Then he looked at them both and they all smiled and said:

“ONE-HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS!”