So, Saturday morning I'm flying along at 37,000 feet on my way home from some exotic foreign country and I'm sitting in my seat mumbling to myself like I usually do, and I must have been mumbling louder than normal because the guy next to me says "What did you say?"

"Oh nothing really," I reply, "I was just thinking about the one thing I wish for, above all others."

"Ah, let me guess...peace and tranquility in the Middle East?" he says.

"No, not that, something bigger," I say.

"Bigger than that?" he comes back, "That must be a big wish you have."

The lady sitting in front of us must have been listening in, because she pokes her head over the seat back and chimes in: "I bet you're wishing for a cure for cancer and other deadly and debilitating diseases?"

"Nope," I say, "You're still not thinking big enough."

By now our conversation as attracted the attention of a large part of the plane, people are craning their necks into the aisle to listen in and see what my one big wish is.

"I bet you're wishing that all the starving children in Dufar could be fed, that's what I bet you're wishing for!" The flight attendant shouts from the forward galley.

"No.  Look, these are all good wishes," I say, "But you need to be thinking bigger, bigger and more important."

At this point I'm standing in the middle of the plane so everyone can hear me.  People are shouting out what they think the wish might be.  "End to global warming!", "Elimination of homelessness!", "Freedom for all the world's people!".  They are coming fast and furious, even the sky marshal is getting into the act.

I hold up my hands and the plane becomes silent.   "You know what I wish for above all else?"  You could hear a pin drop.  "I wish I could play Monkey Island on the iPhone!"

Now, you had to be there, but the whole plane erupts in applause and shouts and cheers.  The pilot gently rocks the wings back and forth to show his approval.   With no prompting from me, the entire cabin starts humming the theme song to Monkey Island and people are making up words to the song and everyone is dancing and hugging.

I settle back into my seat and say to myself, "This is going to be a good flight".

Now, imagine my surprise when I get home, open up my email and there is a message from Eugene Sandulenko (one of the SCUMMVM guys) letting me know that I can now play Monkey Island on the iPhone.

Thank you God for listening to my prayers, and God, if you're still listening, you might want to do something about those starving kids in Dufar, they could also use an iPhone that can play Monkey Island.

UPDATE:  Some people are pretty upset by the last paragraph of this post.  I certainly didn't mean to offend anyone or make light of any terrible situation, just to opposite.  I apologize for not expressing the irony and absurdity of our corporate greed driven materialism better.