I’ve just finished reading Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist.  Wow.  What a book.  The whole way through I had that sparkly feeling I get sometimes when I’m reading something or having a conversation or thinking a thought or noticing what’s around me and sense that whatever I’m doing/thinking/noticing/talking about is somehow deeply significant for me.  Like that conversation with my Gypsy friend, and the talk by Rachel Remen that followed it.  The feeling says, "Pay attention to this, Kristin.  Pay close attention."  It doesn’t usually tell me why.  But it perks me up, and gets me taking note.

The story is a fable about a young man in pursuit of his Personal Legend.  Here’s a taste of the story that also describes a little bit about what a Personal Legend is.  Just before this scene the young man (a shepherd) meets an old man (a stranger) on a park bench who turns out to be a kind of guide, sent by the universe to help the young man find his truest way:

"I’m the King of Salem," the old man had said.

"Why would a king be talking with a shepherd?" the boy asked, awed and embarrassed.

"For several reasons.  But let’s say that the most important is that you have succeeded in discovering your Personal Legend."

The boy didn’t know what a person’s "Personal Legend" was.

"It’s what you have always wanted to accomplish.  Everyone, when they are young, knows what their Personal Legend is.

"At that point in their lives, everything is clear and everything is possible.  They are not afraid to dream, and to yearn for everything they would like to see happen to them in their lives.  But, as time passes, a mysterious force begins to convince them that it will be impossible for them to realize their Personal Legend."

None of what the old man was saying made much sense to the boy.  But he wanted to know what the "mysterious force" was; the merchant’s daughter [a woman the boy had a crush on, and whom the boy hoped to soon be seeing] would be impressed when he told her about that!

"It’s a force that appears to be negative, but actually shows you how to realize your Personal Legend.  It prepares your spirit and your will, because there is one great truth on this planet:  whoever you are, or whatever it is you do, when you really want something, it’s because that desire originated in the soul of the universe.  It’s your mission on earth."

"Even when all you want to do is travel?  Or marry the daughter of a textile merchant?"

"Yes, or even search for treasure.  The Soul of the World is nourished by people’s happiness.  And also by unhappiness, envy, and jealousy.  To realize one’s Personal Legend is a person’s only real obligation.  All things are one.

"And when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it."

They were both silent for a time, observing the plaza and townspeople.  It was the old man who spoke first.

"Why do you tend a flock of sheep?"

"Because I like to travel."

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 he 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 boy felt a pang in his heart, thinking about the merchant’s daughter.  There was surely a baker in her town.

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."

*  *  *

So there’s a little taste of the story.  I imagine it speaks most strongly to those of us whose Personal Legends may not look like anything anyone’s ever heard of (including ourselves!), and we need a little boost (or numerous big ones) to help us pursue it anyway…despite our fears that we might not succeed, or that we’ll look a little foolish trying.

Then again, the book may actually speak to anyone who’s even just a little in touch with the desire to live into who they are in a deeper, more meaningful way, however conventional or unconventional that might turn out looking.

I’d love to talk about it with anyone who has (or chooses to) read it.

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