Some of my favourite moments from this year are directly because of ‘The Alchemist’ by Paulo Coelho. Not only did I find the novel thoughtful and inspiring, but it truly gave me better perspective on the world around me, what I want from my life, and the person I want to be. Although the text itself on the surface is straightforward, for me, it triggered emotions that I hope to capture in my writing.

Note:

I encourage you to read the book before this codex entry. I will be divulging major plot points.

The quest is the goal

The story follows a young man named Santiago. He lives as a shepherd, and although he is content with his current life, he hears a whisper that something much greater awaits him. After hearing this, he tries to shake the feeling that he could be doing something better with his life, but it sticks in his mind. "You could be more...". So, he sets out on a quest to discover his true purpose in life. There are many setbacks along the way, but he stays steadfast, and eventually, he finds what he is looking for.

Santiago did not initially become a shepherd by chance. He chose to become one against the wishes of his parents because he wanted to travel. He wanted to see the world for all that it is, and longed for the freedom that a life on the road can give. As mentioned, he was content with this life, but he had become comfortable.

Comfort is the death of growth, and especially at a younger age, you want to stay uncomfortable so you don’t get stuck. Although Santiago had chosen a more difficult life than some, he had still stopped growing. While he may still learn more about his flock, the land, or himself, in the macro, there is nothing more for him to take from this role. But also, why move on? Goals are meant to be achieved and reset. True growth is in the pursuit of the goal, rather than the result. In some ways, the quest is the goal.

I felt very comfortable in my life. Indeed, I was similar to Santiago in the way I was in a career I chose for myself. And then the time started to fly. Before I knew it, two years were almost up. That was terrifying. I realised that if I don’t do something about this now, I might never get out of this situation. I saw a lot of myself in Santiago as we both believed in our hearts that we could do more with our lives.

One concept from the book that really resonated with me is that as you start to follow the path towards your dream, things will fall into place to help you get there. I have observed this myself. As I try to go a different way, the world has placed opportunity at my feet, almost as if it were trying to help me. A perfect example is being recommended this book after deciding to try to work towards my dream, and having my choice affirmed and supported. While it is true that the universe takes no special effort when it comes to me, the fact that I want to walk this path makes me inherently more open to opportunity than when walking a path I don’t want to. Maybe the same amount of opportunities arise no matter what, but we ignore most of them when we would rather be doing something else. Subconsciously, I guess we don’t want to progress on paths we are not keen to walk due to the fear of not being able to come back.

There is another point in the story where Santiago ends up losing all his money, the first major setback. This is when it is the easiest to give up. When you are coming from a state of comfort and relative abundance, having nothing seems extra cruel. “If I had just stayed where I was, I would be much happier right now!” When walking a new path, it’s natural to compare it to your previous one. But you must remember, while it is true that in the short term your situation might be much worse, you have to think of the long term and whether it’s worth not trying. Will you be happy in 20 years and think, “I’m glad I didn’t take that risk”? Probably not. The cost is too great. The cost of never following your dreams is priceless.

But no matter what your dream is, you will someday achieve it. Then the comfort sets in again, and the process repeats. You always become the shepherd. Maybe the true essence of life is realising that you can achieve what you want, so you will always want something more. Therefore, you must learn to love the path you are on. It’s difficult to enjoy the journey, especially if you are not working towards something you value, so my philosophy on life is now to follow the dreams I am most excited about and enjoy the journey as much as possible.

One of the big tragedies of life is that most people won’t ever try to follow their true dreams. They often follow the safe route, and indeed, to them it seems like the only route. I can understand that those who come from difficult backgrounds or have massive responsibilities might not be able to make such steps, but the real loss is when people who could take the chance simply don’t. I was one of those people until very recently. I hope that when I look back, I see that my life was always in pursuit of my dream.