Unpoetic grammar - please help me write my poem correctly
I decided to learn some English by writing poetry and doing so I wanted to write a comparsion but then stumbled upon unpoetic grammar.
In Germany we have the tradition to make a whish when seeing a shooting star. So I put this as a metaphor in my poem but then got some problems. It reads:

...like desperately wanting to see a falling star
and then not to know what to whish upon

or is it: (always?)
shooting star
where is the difference between a falling and a shooting star? Is there any?

or is it:
and then not KNOWING

or ist it:
... what to whish FOR

Could you help me please? Thank you in advance, dear native speakers!

Question

Unpoetic grammar - please help me write my poem correctly
I decided to learn some English by writing poetry and doing so I wanted to write a comparsion but then stumbled upon unpoetic grammar.
In Germany we have the tradition to make a whish when seeing a shooting star. So I put this as a metaphor in my poem but then got some problems. It reads:

...like desperately wanting to see a falling star
and then not to know what to whish upon

or is it: (always?)
shooting star
> where is the difference between a falling and a shooting star? Is there any?

or is it: 
and then not KNOWING

or ist it:
... what to whish FOR

Could you help me please? Thank you in advance, dear native speakers!

Answer

A "falling star" or a "shooting star" has nothing at all to do with a star! These amazing streaks of light you can sometimes see in the night sky are caused by tiny bits of dust and rock called meteoroids falling into the Earth's atmosphere and burning up. ... Meteors are commonly called falling stars or shooting stars.

"and then not knowing what to wish for" is correct.

Answer

A shooting star and a falling star are basically the same thing.  In poetry, I think shooting star is used more often, as well as in songs.