Wish:
Own rocket
Tomášek is a preschool-age boy who suffers from a combination of conditions, including autism spectrum disorder. Initially, we spoke to his doctor, who confirmed that Tomášek’s diagnosis made him eligible for Goldfish, as his illnesses are life-threatening. His condition is stable for now, but the disease could relapse in full force at any time. In such cases, the Goldfish does not hesitate to visit the dreamer as soon as possible so that he can make a wish and the Goldfish can “flap his flipper” to make sure the wish comes true as soon as possible.
Putting the wish down in words:
His mother warned us in advance that Tomášek was really “peculiar” and that she didn’t know how he’d react to strangers or how the whole meeting and discussion about the wish would go. Tomášek was very happy to talk about his likes and what he would like to get from Goldfish. Initially it seemed that the first meeting would not be enough and that Tomášek would need more time to think. He wondered if he’d rather meet a dolphin, or if a wish somehow connected to outer space would prevail. In the end, the cosmic desire clearly won. Tomášek loves space exploration, reading books about space and watching documentaries about it. He loves planets, black holes and especially spaceships. We therefore looked at different variations on how the final wish could be realized. Maybe he wanted to visit a space exhibition or a planetarium? But our little dreamer didn’t want a space-related experience. Most of all, he wanted to have a rocket of his own at home. The rocket also had to serve as a playground.
So, during the meeting, we had to discuss with Tomášek what kind of rocket it would be and what it would be used for. If he had wanted a real rocket, the Goldfish probably couldn’t have done it. But when it was agreed that the rocket would be used as a toy, it was something completely different.
Granting the wish:
When it comes to traditional playgrounds, we usually choose one of the pre-set playgrounds that suits the best the dreamer’s wish. Today, there is a wide range of slides, swings, sandpits and similar equipment available that drive children crazy with joy and parents crazy with fear.
But there is a shortage of rocket playgrounds on the market at the moment. And as you probably know, children with autism spectrum disorder can have very clear ideas about how things should look.
That’s why we contacted Mr. Abraham. From the beginning, his replies were almost immediate and his proposals had everything the little dreamer would have wanted. Among other things, they managed to create a control panel with different levers and buttons that would blink according to Tomášek’s wishes. And because Tomášek wanted to have control over his own wish, the Goldfish magically sent him the final blueprint of how the rocket would look like. And Tomášek really liked the design. He only changed the color scheme of the rocket, but otherwise it was exactly what he wanted to have at home in the garden. So, there was nothing to prevent the rocket from being ready for launch shortly.
And how did it all turn out?
The weather was very nice during the day of handover. The gentlemen who turned into rocket design engineers for the day arrived early in the morning. They hid their car not far from the house and waited for the Goldfish to sort everything out. Around eight o’clock, a colleague handed Tomášek a letter written by Goldfish, clearly stating that his wish would be granted. He already knew from his mother that something was going to happen in their garden that day. He went to the kindergarten obediently (his mum says he doesn’t really want to go at other times) and was looking forward to the afternoon… The rocket skeleton was already pre-assembled, so the construction on site went smoothly. In the afternoon, all the details were fine-tuned, especially the rocket’s inner tip, where the images of space had to be placed just as the dreamer wanted them to be.
When Tomášek came home from kindergarten
he was very shy and his mother wasn’t sure if he would even dare to go to the garden. The rocket was already in place and the technicians the Goldfish had called in to help were about to leave. Then Tomášek suddenly ran out to the garden. With a beaming face, he shouted “thank you” and immediately climbed into his rocket. “Get in quickly, we’re leaving soon!” His younger sister only just made it to the first start. Tomášek was then lost in his own world, letting his imagination and space take over, so the colleagues took a few more photos to serve as material for the photo book that the Goldfish would prepare for Tomášek, and wishing him many light years travelled safely and many important discoveries made they bid farewell to the dreamer.