Posts Tagged The Alchemist

LIT 140: The Alchemist


The Alchemist
by Paulo Coelho

 

1st reading

» the lake into which Narcissus drowned weeps for him, for it was in the depths of his eyes that she sees her own beauty reflected

» intuition is really a sudden immersion of the soul into life’s universal currents, where histories & knowledges of all peoples are connected

» people need not dear fear the unknown so long as they are capable of achieving what they need & want

» when you cannot go back, you have only to worry about the best way of moving forward. the rest is up to Allah, including the danger.

» when it is not a battle of good & evil, but for the balance of power, it will last longer than others – because Allah is on both side

2nd reading

» one is loved because one is loved. no reason is needed for loving.

 

more good stuff:

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solamente el prólogo

I have written my first book review; it is of The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho.

In the end, I found myself most moved by the prologue and a story of Narcissus…

…a youth who knelt daily beside a lake to contemplate his own beauty. He was so fascinated by himself that, one morning, he fell into the lake and drowned. At the spot where he fell, a flower was born. which was called narcissus.

…when Narcissus died, the goddess of the forest appeared and found the lake, which had been fresh water, transformed into a lake of salty tears.

“Why do you weep?” the goddesses asked.

“I weep for Narcissus, “ the lake replied.

“Ah, it is no surprise that you weep for Narcissus,” they said, “for thought we always pursued him in the forest, you alone could contemplate his beauty close at hand.”

“But … was Narcissus beautiful?” the lake asked.

“Who better than you to know that?” the goddesses said in wonder. “After all, it was by your banks that he knelt each day to contemplate himself?”

The lake was silent for some time. Finally it said:

“I weep for Narcissus, but I never noticed that Narcissus was beautiful. I weep because, each time he knelt beside my banks, I could see, in the depths of his eyes, my own beauty reflected.”

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tags of the qwerty kind: nearest book, page 123

I’m home. I’ve changed into my favorite pair of baggy a**, well-worn UNM track sweats and a sports tank, plugged in the power supply, and settled into the dip in the couch for an intimate paper lamp-lit evening with my aging laptop. I’ve checked my email to find, among other things, a Google Alert for “Ms. Herr”.

Turns out I’ve been tagged, linked to, and commented on (not necessarily in that order) by Spectagirl. Yes, when we adults play tag, we touch each other vicariously via subtle strokes of the qwerty-kind.

Bacon chains aside, this is not the first time I’ve been tagged, and it may not be the only tag game I perpetuate, but it is the first one I’m following through on (I have one from over a year ago still on my 2do list where it will likely remain indefinitely). Why this one? Cause I like the randomness of the first four rules.

  1. Pick up the nearest book (of at least 123 pages).
  2. Open the book to page 123.
  3. Find the fifth sentence.
  4. Post the next three sentences (sentences 6-9).
  5. Tag five people.

 

The book closest to me happens to be both the last book I read and the one that I want to read the next time I find myself with a free weekend, a sunlit window, and my papasan chair.

The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

From that day on, the desert would represent only one thing to her: the hope for his return.

* * * * *

“Don’t think about what you’ve left behind,” the alchemist said to the boy as they began to ride across the sands of the desert. “Everything is written in the Soul of the World, and there it will stay forever.”

 

So who’s next? Who are the peeps and tweeps I want to hear from [and why]?

1. @CTri17 [ain’t no time like roomie time]

2. @soul4real / Alisa Cooper [my first tweet from The Alchemist is the one, I believe, that became the catalyst for our conversations]

3. @dykc / Clarence Smith, Jr. [a stretch goal as we don’t know each other IRL and hardly conversed via Twitter, but who oft asks “marinate”]

4. Santiago Martinez [a pleasure knowing: St. Santiago]

5. @brianshaler / Brian Shaler [for old time’s sake, despite my suspicion that he’s/you’re the least likely to respond]

6. Yadira Pagan [out of sight and out of correspondence doesn’t mean out of mind]

7. @sunnythaper / Sunny Thaper [triangulated somewhere between wild hair up my a**, comic relief, and introduction of an unknown variable]

OK, so I listed (in no particular order) seven peeps and tweeps, but it’s cause I’m doubtful the first five I thought of will come out and play. For those who do, please feel free add your excerpt as a comment here. Or blog it and provide the link.

I’m lookin’ forward to watching this one unfold. Happy excerpting. 🙂

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