Page 10 - The Alchemist - Paulo Coelho

“When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it,” he
had said.

The boy was trying to understand the truth of what the old man had said. There he was in
the empty marketplace, without a cent to his name, and with not a sheep to guard through
the night.

“Learn to recognize omens, and follow them,” the old king had said.

An omen. The boy smiled to himself. He picked up the two stones and put them back in
his pouch. He didn’t consider mending the hole—the stones could fall through any time
they wanted. He had learned that there were certain things one shouldn’t ask about, so as
not to flee from one’s own Personal Legend. “I promised that I would make my own
decisions,” he said to himself.

...he realized that he had to choose between thinking of himself as the poor victim of a
thief and as an adventurer in quest of his treasure.

“I’m an adventurer, looking for treasure,” he said to himself.

But instead of being saddened, he was happy. He no longer had to seek out food and
water for the sheep; he could go in search of his treasure, instead. He had not a cent in his
pocket, but he had faith. He had decided, the night before, that he would be as much an
adventurer as the ones he had admired in books.

The candy seller had a smile on his face: he was happy, aware of what his life was about,
and ready to begin a day’s work. His smile reminded the boy of the old man—the
mysterious old king he had met. “This candy merchant isn’t making candy so that later he
can travel or marry a shopkeeper’s daughter. He’s doing it because it’s what he wants to
do,” thought the boy. He realized that he could do the same thing the old man had done—
sense whether a person was near to or far from his Personal Legend. Just by looking at
them. “It’s easy, and yet I’ve never done it before,” he thought.

When he had gone only a short distance, he realized that, while they were erecting the
stall, one of them had spoken Arabic and the other Spanish.

And they had understood each other perfectly well.

There must be a language that doesn’t depend on words, the boy thought. I’ve already
had that experience with my sheep, and now it’s happening with people.

If I can learn to understand this language without words, I can learn to understand the