It was 1998. We were watching the World Cup final between Brazil and France. And one of us had an idea: let’s take a piece of paper and write down our wishes for the next four years. What do we aspire to achieve or experience by the next World Cup final, in 2002? Oddly enough, we actually did it. Each one of us wrote down three wishes. Then we gave the pieces of paper to our friend who seemed the most responsible at the time. And then things got complicated. The first time we wanted to break out the sealed wishes, the guy who was supposed to keep an eye on them, claimed that he had lost them. After a while we discovered that he hadn’t lost them, but his girlfriend (who wasn’t his girlfriend at the time we wrote the wishes) was, for some reason, strongly against us reading them. After long negotiations, she gave us her permission, but then another friend in our group suddenly stood up and said: no. Not now. I am not ready to face this yet. And it went on and on. Every time we wanted to reveal the wishes, one of us objected.
Twelve years after we wrote them, our wishes still remain unopened. But they have inspired my new novel World Cup Wishes, which follows four close friends from 1998 to 2002. I was fascinated by the fact that people were not willing to acknowledge their own dreams. And I wanted to follow, through writing, the elusive course of wishes – those you write, and those you don’t even dare to write.
I invite you to join me and write down your three wishes on our Facebook page. Where do you want to be in 2014? I would love to know!
Yours,
Eshkol Nevo
Visit the World Cup Wishes Fan Page on Facebook to post your wish before the World Cup Final on 11th July for a chance to win a copy of Eshkol Nevo's World Cup Wishes as well as two other fantastic World Cup books: Heroes, Hairbands and Hissy Fits by Mark Chapman (aka Chappers) and How to Win the World Cup by Graham McColl.