Alchemist

"To realize one's destiny is a person's only real obligation." 


"The 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.'"


"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.'" 

I'm currently reading The Alchemist. I'm not very far (page 31 to be exact) but it's already making me think and ponder. 

Side note******The author of the book is Catholic so religion is important to him and he talks about God in the book but at the same time the book is like a fable. He talks about the Universe and "Personal Legends." So as a Christian I don't take everything he writes as something true or the way God wants things.

The first sentence I wrote..."To realize one's destiny is a person's only real obligation"......true? God has a plan for all of us, one specific for just you. So is that our only real obligation? Figuring out what God's plan is and then living it? It seems like a silly question if we believe God has a certain path for us. Because if he does then why wouldn't we follow it? But if you don't believe in God, then do you believe in destiny and fate? Is your obligation then finding your destiny? Or is your life what you make it and there is no such thing as fate or destiny?

For me personally, I believe we were put here for a reason. It wasn't by chance, it was by a creator; a creator named God. If He put me here and He has a plan for my life and knows me better than I know myself, then why wouldn't I want to find my purpose or path in this world? Can I be truly happy and fulfilled if I'm not living my God-given path? I don't think so......so I guess I agree with, "To realize one's destiny (or in my case God's purpose) is a person's only real obligation." If I'm not trying to realize it, then what am I living for? What other obligation do I have?

"He never realized that people are capable, at any time in their lives, of doing what they dream of.'" Is this statement true? I have a hard time with this one. Life isn't as easy as picking up and going after what you want. There's other factors that come into play like family and money and jobs and bills. I'm not saying that you can't reach your dreams but it may take longer than you'd like it to, to reach it. Maybe I'm just reading this statement the wrong way?

"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.'" 
I have to agree with this one. It's certainly not true for everyone but I think it is for a lot. We care more about what other people think of us and our dreams than about what we want.

What are your thoughts or ideas on any of these statements?