Never give up on something you Desire

“It’s a force that appears to be negative, but actually shows you how to realize your Personal Legend. It prepares your spirit and your will, because 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” (Coelho, 23).

This quote in part one of Paulo Coelho’s novel, The Alchemist, is in my opinion a quote that stands out. It explains how in life people have those goals they hope to accomplish, however it takes many harsh steps to get to that goal. He explains by going through these hardships of accomplishing this goal, you realize how bad you want it. I feel that is important in finishing something that makes a strong impact in your life. It is similar to how in college, student’s stay up all night doing homework and trying their best to succeed in their classes because they really want a college degree. He also talks about how you tend to realize who you are as a person when you are brought to these challenges. I feel this quote inspires me because it reminds me that there is a purpose to why I am working hard and going through these challenges.

Something I also wanted to relate this quote to is pledging into a sorority. Pledging is not an easy process but in the end it is very rewarding. When I went through this process there was moments were I wanted to give up but I reminded myself that I wanted to do this for a reason and I was not going to give up. During that time I learned more about myself, and found my “Personal Legend.” Most importantly I learned not to give up on myself and that I am capable to accomplish anything in life as long as I work hard.

With the novel I feel Santiago, the protagonist, has this desire to find the treasure. However with this journey to try and find this pyramid I feel fate is testing him in whether or not he really wants this treasure. He gives clues of him thinking about giving up but he does not because deep down inside he really wants this treasure. As the story progresses I predict that Santiago will change what he really wants to do in life, where as he would figure that he has another purpose in life besides traveling the world.