A Wish was written by my wife's great-grandfather, Fred Hunting Reynolds, sometime after the birth of his son. He was not a writer. He was an executive for Marshall Fields, a treasurer or something, and as far as I know, this was his only attempt at writing. He died in 1929, when his son was just 11 years old.
I was introduced to the poem several years ago, on Father's Day, when my mother-in-law gave me a framed copy as a gift. I was deeply moved and read it frequently, keeping it on my nightstand where it remains to this day. From the beginning, I wanted to illustrate it with photographs. A Wish, is the result. A collaboration between a writer and a photographer who never met, but who shared a bond that transcends the generations, the love of our children.
Special thanks to Jeff McGrath for composing and performing the music. Also to Joey Bruno (the young son), Sam Erickson(the teenage son), and Pete Bruno (the dad).