THE WORLDS GREATEST LIE

"The Alchemist is a beautiful book about magic, dreams and the treasures we seek elsewhere and then find at our doorstep."

Thank you to Paulo Coelho for his wonderful prose and infinite wisdom presented in the International Best Seller The Alchemist.  I read this book 10 years ago, but wasn't ready for the messages and wisdom it presented, so I put it down and never finished it.  Recently it seemed like The Alchemist has been calling to me from my bookshelf.  It kept catching my eye.  I finally picked it up again and after reading about 14 pages became romanced by the beautiful writing and engaged by the wisdom.  Below are some snippets that I enjoyed.  Thanks Paulo!

The Worlds Greatest Lie is this: that at a certain point in our lives, we lose control of what's happening to us, and our lives become controlled by fate.  That's the world's greatest lie."

One great truth on this planet is: whoever you are, or whatever it is that you do, when you really want something, it's because that desire originated in the should of the universe.  It's your mission on earth.

"Why do you tend to a flock of sheep?" asked the old man.
"Because I like to travel," replied the boy.

The old man pointed to a baker standing in his shop window at one corner of the plaza.  "When he was a child, that man wanted to travel, too.  But decided first to buy his bakery and put some money aside.  When he's an old man, he's going to spend a month in Africa.  He never realized that people are capable, at any time in their lives, of doing what they dream of."

"He Should have decided to become a shepherd,' the boy said.
"Well, he thought about that," the old man said.  "But bakers are more important people than shepherds.  Bakers have homes, while shepherds sleep out in the open.  Parents would rather see their children marry bakers than shepherds."
The old man continued, "In the long run, what people think about shepherds and bakers becomes more important for them than their own Personal Legends."