Can your path truly grant your wishes?

According to Swedish legend, yes. This path is Mårten Trotzigs Gränd.

Legend has it that a traipse down the steps of Stockholm's narrowest alleyway, with arms maintaining constant contact with the walls, will give you the power of a single wish.

Earlier this summer I visited this street and, with arms extended, made my wish.

Then I did the very same thing a few days later.

While I will not disclose my first wish, I will gladly share my second wish because it involves all of you.

Yes, I made a wish for each of you out there and I hope it comes true.

On my second walk down Mårten Trotzigs Gränd, I wished that everyone would remember their significance when life feels bleak.

I wished single parents, fighting the draw of sleep in order to provide for their family, would find it in their hearts to push through. I wished that they would always think of the children that depend on them and will thank them when they are older.

I wished that recently divorced parents, exhausted from the loss of a long custody battle, would remember their role in the child's life and continue to push to be a part of it.

I wished that all of those fighting the daily battle with anxiety would remember that they can and, without a doubt, should push through feeling of impending doom and find relief from all of their worries.

I wished that all of those tormented by depression would seek the help that they need and realize that there is so much to be happy about in life.

I wished that all of those considering suicide would take a moment to consider how many people love them and how much their life means to those around them.

I wished that the middle school boy with the blade to his wrist in the school bathroom, sick of the merciless teasing, would stop to consider the pain that it will cause his mother when she sees the scars and realizes what happened to her beloved child.

I wished that the middle school girl feeling incredibly ashamed of her weight and appearance would remember that she is so much more than the number on a scale.

I wished that humanity would take the time to consider the significance of even the smallest actions because that does not seem to be the case in the modern world. Too often we shut down on ourselves and shut others out, emotionally and physically.

All I wish for is a little more love and a lot less hate, bigotry, and destruction, in all spheres of the world. If we can just manage a little less hate and a little more love, the world would be a much better place to live.

Instead of losing our cool at the smallest inconveniences, I propose we laugh at the funny things in life. Instead of giving up when all looks lost, I propose we turn to one another for comfort and advice. Instead of raging at one another via online discussion boards, I propose we discuss them in a face-to-face discussion (you know, like adults.)

The next time you find yourself in the position to potentially ruin anyone's life, including your own, I just wish you would remember to ask yourself:

Instead of hating myself because everyone else does, what's to stop me from loving myself anyways?

Instead of giving up because everyone tells me it's pointless, what's to stop me from proving them wrong?

Instead of giving into negative thoughts, what's to stop me from killing the voices by asking for help?

Instead of tearing each other down, what's to stop us from building each other up?

Life is a beautiful thing and should be appreciated while we have it. Sure, it looks bleak at points but that's just the thing: it only looks bleak at certain points. There are dark patches but that should only encourage you to fight your way back to the enjoyment of the light patches.

The choice of your path is yours, just know that I used mine to make this wish for you.