In Good Faith

His salt and pepper hair is cropped short. His eyes are peacefully closed behind thin black frames, unwavering; his stubbled face, solemn, and his lips, quietly muttering.

The ceil blue scrubs are complemented with a worn pair of running shoes. A hospital badge loosely dangles from the lanyard around his neck.

The train lurches to a stop, he furrows his eyebrows and tightly clutches to something inside a front pocket of his bag. The first cruciform bead with the cross escapes incautiously. He opens his eyes briefly and scurries it back into his hands, continuing with prayer.

Dreams

When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you achieve it. – Paulo Coelho

One of my all time favorite books is The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. It’s a book about so many things. I had to read it twice to even get a grasp of what the point of the book was. The first time I read it, I got the superficial layout. There’s a boy named Santiago and he goes on a journey to find this place he’s been literally dreaming about for days. He comes across some interesting people and situations but he eventually gets to his destination. That’s pretty much the layout of the entire story. When I brought myself to re-read the book for a second time, things made much more sense. It’s not just a book about a journey. It’s a book about finding yourself and being content with the decisions you make in life and paving your own way. Coelho writes so eloquently and simply, the allegorical story of life. We learn, we believe, and we dream. And if we’re lucky enough, we achieve the dream. Everyone goes through these motions at one point or other in their life, it’s just that not many people take the time to realize this. As we move through life, our dreams and goals change. We see new things, observe new events or ideologies, meet new people, and in the course of all this, we ourselves evolve.

In the story Santiago is a shepherd who wanders the hills of Spain with his sheep. He leaves his family in search of the world and all that it has to offer. This whole concept sounds awfully familiar. Whether young or old, most humans are usually ambitiously in search of something. There aren’t very many people I have met who are undoubtedly content with themselves and their way of life. As much as some people try, no life lived is without regrets. But when you truly and purely want something in life, chances are you’ll get it. This book is also about having faith; not just faith in a higher entity but also faith in yourself. When you start having faith in yourself (not overconfidence or ego) things just start falling into place. There is a certain calm that comes with this, which is frankly unexplainable, and can only be experienced.

I think this is one book everyone must read. I know I’ve tried pushing certain people to read it (you know who you are) simply because I think the message behind the book is so pure and enlightening and it really makes you question a lot of things in life (in a good way).