If there’s one book that’s been a game changer for me, I’d have to say it’s The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I remember reading it close to two years ago, with a pencil and ruler in hand (because no pen or highlighter are allowed on my books!). There were just so many lovely quotes that I’d like to revisit. It is a story of pure magic, about a simple shepherd boy venturing out into the world seeking great treasures.

Now two years later, with added life experience – I revisit the magically threaded words which I once painstakingly underlined.

I hope you enjoy them as much as I do, feel free to add anything that I might have left out!

******************

- It’s the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting.

- …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.

- There is one great truth on this planet: whoever you are, or whatever it is that 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.

- When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you achieve it.

- The secret of happiness is to see all the marvels of the world, and never to forget the drops of oil on the spoon.

- [Love] – the language that everyone was capable of understanding in their heart. Something older than humanity, more ancient than the desert… It was the pure Language of the World. It required no explaination, just as the universe needs none as it travels through endless time.

- You told me you loved me. Then you taught me something of the universal language and the Soul of the World. Because of that, I have become part of you.

- You have told me about your dreams, about the old king and your treasure. And you’ve told me about omens. So now I fear nothing, because it was those omens that brought you to me. And I am part of your dream, a part of your destiny as you call it.

- The dunes are changed by the wind, but the desert never changes. That’s the way it will be with our love for each other.

- It’s not what enters men’s mouth that’s evil. It’s what comes out of their mouths that is.

- One is loved because one is loved. No reason is needed for loving.

- I had a dream, and I met a king. I sold crystal and crossed the desert. And because the tribes declared war, I went to the well, seeking the alchemist. So I love you because the entire universe conspired to help me find you.

- If what one finds is made of pure matter, it will never be spoil. And one can always come back. If what you found was only a moment of light, like the explosion of a star, you would find nothing on your return.

- Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than suffering itself.

- …happiness could be found in a grain of sand from the desert… because a grain of sand is a moment of creation, and the universe has taken millions of years to create it.

- When you possess great treasure within you, and try to tell others of them, seldom are you believed.

- Your eyes show the strength of your soul.

- When you are loved, you can do anything in creation. When you are loved, there’s no need at all to understand what’s happening because everything happens within you, and even men can turn themselves into the wind.

- Because when we love, we always strive to become better than we are.

- Where your treasure is, there also will be your heart.

-Be aware of the place where you are brought to tears, that’s where [your heart is] and that’s where your treasure is.