Context:

She was in an all-girls elementary school in Jordan when she learned this game. She thought that it was silly, and did not pay much mind to it, saying that “girls, usually teenagers, like to make wishes.” There are two versions of this game that she remembers.

Game (Version 1):

The game involves two people (P1 and P2), and one of their eyelashes. P1, after noticing a fallen eyelash near one of P2’s eyes, immediately tells P2 to make a wish, and guess an eye (left or right). If P2 guesses the eye that the eyelash is near, their wish is supposed to come true. If they don’t, nothing happens.

Game (Version 2):

The game involves two people (P1 and P2), and one of their eyelashes. P1, after noticing a fallen eyelash near one of P2’s eyes, immediately grabs the eyelash and squeezes it between their thumb and index finger. P1 then tells P2 to make a wish, and guess which finger the eyelash will stick to. After the guess, P1 separates their fingers to see which finger the eyelash is stuck to. If P2 guesses the finger that the eyelash is stuck to, their wish is supposed to come true. If they don’t, nothing happens.

(I added the P1 and P2 distinctions to the original explanation for the sake of clarity)

Thoughts:

I remember my informant playing this game with me when I was in elementary school, and it reminded me of how people at that time would also blow on the dandelion seed puffs and make a wish. At its core, when one makes a wish, they are hoping that something is accomplished that they themselves do not have the power to do. Jay Mechling, in Chapter 5 of Elliot Oring’s Folk Groups and Folklore Genres: An Introduction, notes that a “theme [pervading children’s folklore] is power, something children generally do not have in their institutional settings. So they take power, or play at taking power, through their folklore.”* This aligns with the idea of making a wish when an eyelash comes loose and the child guesses the right eye or finger; they earned a wish (an instance of unlimited power) that they can use as they please.

*Jay Mechling. “Children’s Folklore.” Folk Groups and Folklore Genres: An Introduction, edited by E. Oring, 91-120. Logan: Utah State University Press, 1986.