The Alchemist

My brother's birthday gift to me; he wrote:

As I read this book I could not think of anyone else I know whose life's journey resembled that of Santiago, than yours.

It's always complex to read a book that comes with that prologue: did he actually read it? (it doesn't look like his kind of book - I didn't know he read novels - of course this based on something he said to me about 10 years ago!!!); was it this part that he thought resembled my life or was it another...

But soon these thoughts were gone away - the simple allegorical story was in some sense perfect for this time of my life - a window to the things I once loved and maybe not any more and the things that I have grown to love and the call to make a decision, to make room for the dreams, the new ones.

So this was the book that gave the infamous,

when you want something all the universe conspires to help you achieve it

I loved the writing style - short, simple sentences. And very interestingly the first line of the book states "the boy's name was Santiago", which is the only time he is named - he is referred to as 'the boy' throughout the book. I also loved the way he wrote 'Personal Legend', capitalizing the first letters, like it was a proper noun.

Interestingly, the epilogue for the book talked about how Coelho found inspiration for his first novel, The Pilgrimage, after doing the camina the Santiago de Compostela. I had never heard of this, until a friend who I have great respect for, talked about this in Tokyo about a month ago. The next day, taking the flight from Narita to Vancouver, I read in the UA magazine, an interview with Martin Sheen on his movie, The Way, again about this camina (terrible story, but I watched this for the scenes of the camina, and I was not disappointed). So I go from never hearing about this to hearing about this from three independant sources within the course of a month - speaking of omens, the recurring theme of the book!

But here are some quotes that really spoke to my heart:

But this was the present moment and he wanted to live it as he did the lessons of his past and his dreams of the future. Although the vision of the date palms would someday be just a memory, right now it signified shade, water, and a refuge from the war.

You must love the desert, but never trust it completely. Because the desert tests all men: it challenges every step, and kills those who become distracted.

And if you didn't fall hopelessly and romantically in love with the desserts of the Giza pyramids after reading this book, well then you must not be a hopeless romantic!! :)

Day before yesterday my bosses said they wanted to talk to me today; they are probably getting concerned about the less than stellar performance promised by my previous bosses. I was able to talk myself through it and they seemed happy at the end. But today, well actually yesterday, after lots of crying that physically shook me like it hasn't for a long long time, I decided I will become happy again.

It was also a time I felt gratitude for the constants of my life, for the love, for the witness to my life. Even at times that my mind strays, I have found comfort in the constants. And for the first time in a long time, I said a clear 'no' to temptation, so I will be comforted in the constants.

And tonight I came home and huddled on my couch under the throw with a hot chocolate and finished reading The Alchemist and it calmed me in so many ways. Paranoia and psychosis are gone tonight and a strong determination to keep them at bay is now within me.

It also made me think of new beginnings; I have been for a while, but this time it felt stronger: my yoga teacher said last week (I know, I don't believe it either - that I am quoting a yogi):

Something's have been in your life and served you well and now they have earned the right to die. Offer them up to the fire, to agni, to make room for new beginnings. Let them die with dignity.

and the Alchemist quote that really, really talked to my heart at this time,

“There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure.”

If I were to go by the book's theme of 'recognizing omens' so I would realize my 'Personal Legend', this would be it!

"Well, then, why should I listen to my heart?"

"Because you will never again be able to keep it quiet. Even if you pretend not to have heard what it tells you, it will always be there inside you, repeating to you what you're thinking about life and about the world."

- The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho