“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.”
In the book The Alchemist, a Shepard boy named Santiago encounters a series of events that set him on the path to find and realize his mission on earth — or as described in the book, to follow his “personal legend”.
It’s been several years since I first read the Alchemist and have been making good use of quarantine time by rereading it. In the book, there is a theme with characters who ignore the call to pursue their personal legend. Their rationale is often “I’ll first become wealthy, and THEN I will pursue my personal legend.”
Sound familiar?
It does for me, that’s exactly what I am doing. It’s exactly what people who are working so they can retire are doing.
For me, the underlying motivation isn’t to be rich so I can show off my wealth. The desire is to have financial certainty. Wealth is a safety net, it allows you to afford rent, food, health insurance, etc. It’s a way out in case you realize that you were misguided in your youthful pursuit of passion and meaning.
But still, it’s intriguing to me that the desire for certainty BEFORE agreeing to the call of adventure is a universal phenomenon.
There’s a strange verse in the Bible that seems to address the concern for certainty. Jesus said:
“do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink…. Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them”
A theme in the Bible and The Alchemist is faith. Jesus seems to be addressing the issue of his followers wanting certainty about the future but reassures them that they will be taken care of on the path.
Similarly in The Alchemist, following one’s personal legend is an act of faith. But despite the seeming irrationality to following the call when you set out realize your personal legend “all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”
That’s an oddly similar parallel… And oddly relevant to where I am in life.
I’ve taken some action towards finding my personal legend, I moved to New York, did yoga teacher training in Nepal, and quit a high paying job in New York to live in a van. But I’ve only dabbled towards my personal legend, I’m yet to go ‘all in’.
I have spreadsheets of retirement calculators with all different scenario’s about how much money I need to retire. Some are for the age of 40, some are in the next year, but all are pursuing certainty that if I did go ‘all in’ that I would have a way out in case it was a mistake.
But that may not be how the world works.
I’ve been shocked at how hard it is to be still and examine my own beliefs. To ask: “What do I believe?” and “Am I living in alignment with that?” — those are frightening questions. To genuinely ask a question, you have to be open to the answer. You may find that it requires a significant restructuring of your life. And to do that is no easy task. Plus there’s the added uncertainty of: What if you’re wrong?
So, as in The Alchemist, most characters say: ‘Where I am today is good enough’. And live out the rest of their lives that way. Certainty trumps everything else.
What will I choose?
What will YOU choose?