I've always been super interested in reading. In middle school, my friends and I would compete to see how many books we could read in one week. I churned books out at a speed that my college-self admires. Because now, even though I still love reading, it's much harder to fit reading time into my days. College demands lots of time, so if I do find some free time during the day, I use it to hang out with my friends or dedicate it to errands.
Nevertheless, I try to always have one book to read. Last week, I bought The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho on Amazon. Over the years, many people have come to me and said that The Alchemist was their favorite book. It sounded science-y and had never been explained to me, so I wasn't sure what to expect.
What I found was a book that I believe everyone (especially college kids) should read at least once in their life. I say once because I have every intention of reading it again. The language is simple, the plot is straightforward, but the author uses this as a foundation to emphasize themes and a deep understanding of the patterns of life.
This book is currently making it's rounds through my friend group because I want all of them to read it. However, I understand that reading isn't everyone's thing, so I compiled some of my favorite quotes here so that people could get a taste of how I benefited from this book.
1. “Everyone seems to have a clear idea of how other people should lead their lives, but none about his or her own.”
In society today, there are a multitude of "norms" to which we are all expected to abide. It's common practice to focus attention outwardly: on what other people are doing, how they are handling situations in their lives, and how we measure up to them. I think humans do this because focusing on others' transgressions is much easier than putting effort into fixing our own. This is a great source of conflict in the world, and it could all be avoided if we decided to focus more effort on bettering ourselves than on judging others.
2. “People are capable, at any time in their lives, of doing what they dream of.”
This quote specifically resonated with me, because I went back and forth about my major for over a year. I doubted my capabilities in the field I found interest, and I feared what may happen if I decided to follow my dreams. This book gave me a reality check. Everyone on earth with a dream is capable of achieving it, no matter at what point in their life.
3. “Don't give in to your fears. If you do, you won't be able to talk to your heart.”
Hand in hand with quote #2, our fears are the only things standing in the way from what we dream of doing. Focusing on the fear that precedes the initial leap to following a dream is what causes so many to never see their dreams come true. If we focus on fear, we have no room to focus on the desires of our heart.
4. “When we love, we always strive to become better than we are. When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.”
When I read this, I thought of how much I love my friends and family. They all make me want to be a better person, and they cheer me on to do so. I believe in the importance of community in life, and how everyone deserves to have a core group of friends that support them through life.
5. “There is only one way to learn. It's through action. Everything you need to know you have learned through your journey.”
We can't sit back through life and expect great wisdom to suddenly come to us. Life should be spent learning, and the most effective way to do that is to actually live. Taking action and accepting risk is the only way to learn.
6. “The secret is here in the present. If you pay attention to the present, you can improve upon it. And, if you improve on the present, what comes later will also be better."
It is so easy for me to focus on the future, or on my past mistakes. This is the most ineffective way of living though, because our greatest gift is the present. Where we are at now is where we are meant to focus our efforts. If we can better this moment, the ones that come after will be better as well.
7. “When a person really desires something, all the universe conspires to help that person to realize his dream.”
Sometimes, our desires are difficult to recognize, because society conditions us to think and act a certain way. However, I like to believe that if we feel deeply to pursue a specific passion, everything will work out in a way to make that happen. We are all capable of contributing to making the world a better place, and this is illustrated through the feelings of passion we all have inside of us. We are all different, each of us possessing a different passion. What we do with this feeling inside us is not certain, but the mere acknowledgement of it is enough to steer us in the right direction. It would be a shame to go our whole lives and never once act on our passions.
I could make this post pages long, but I'll cut myself off here. If anyone reading this needs a book to read, or maybe just some inspiration, I'd recommend The Alchemist a million times over.
Going to the cinema alone is good for your mental health, says science
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