And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it."
Is this not such a grand thought? If only I could convince myself to believe that such is possible. I would like to believe it though, with all my heart. But there is something that is pulling me back, telling me that, "It is just not possible" or "This will not happen to you".
But it all comes down to faith does it not? Faith in His power. For who else would allow the universe to conspire with you but Him? It is a test. I am certain of it. The doubts of the mind should be forgotten and set aside. All that has to be done is to believe. Believe in His goodness. Believe that everything will fall into place. And have faith that what you wanted to achieve will be given.
"The closer one gets to realizing his Personal Legend, the more that Personal Legend becomes his true reason for being."
Personal Legends. I was very intrigued by this concept. At first I thought it was synonymous with an ambition. But then as I read on, I realized it was so much more.
I do not know how to define it precisely, but I will try.
To me a Personal Legend is what has been written down for you. And only for you. It is the path meant for you. It is not like destiny or fate whence you accept what has been given without question just because you were "destined for it". No. With Personal Legends, you are left with a choice. A choice whether to pursue it or not. It is like knowing within yourself that this is what you are supposed to do. But knowing it is not enough. You have to desire it with everything you’ve got because it is only then that you may succeed. Simply put, it must be your raison d etre.
It is such a coincidence that just when I have given up on law school, I decided to read this book. I have always wanted to read it but just thought that I did not have the time to do so. I felt like most of the thought provoking questions and statements were aimed right at me. Well actually, tinamaan talaga ako. It is finally occurring to me that if I want to be lawyer, I would have to want it bad. Make it my raison d etre. I must do all I can to achieve it and have faith that the universe will conspire with me while I am at it. Is it my Personal Legend then?
I have yet to figure it out.
"...people need not fear the unknown if they are capable of achieving what they need and want."
Is that not part of being human? Fearing the unknown? We have always feared what we cannot feel with our senses. Maybe because we do not have an inkling of what it is and how it could affect us. The irony of it all is that we do not have the capacity to know the future. So what is the point of fearing the unknown when we have no way of knowing it at all? Why do we have to worry?
I like Paulo Coelho s reason. It is asserting yourself that counts. Taking charge of the situation. Yeah, so what if there are unknown things to me? So what if I do not know what the future holds? I can assure myself that whatever happens I will have all that I want and need. Because I will work for it no matter what.
But I cannot help but recall some verses in the Bible saying, "The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?" and "If God is for us, who can be against us?" It is not just ourselves we must depend on, we must also depend on Him. In fact, more than we depend on ourselves. For we are only capable of doing so much because of Him. It is essential that we should not be blinded by our achievements. We must give all credit to Him alone because with Him nothing is impossible.
"Because I do not live in either my past or my future. I am interested only in the present. If you can concentrate always on the present, you will be a happy man. You will see that there is life in the desert, that there are stars in the heavens, and that tribesmen fight because they are part of the human race. Life will be a party for you, a grand festival, because life is the moment we are living right now."
I wish I could do that. To just live for each day and not think about tomorrow. To be free of all worries and problems. To be free of fear. Would not that be nice? I think that then I would have the time to appreciate all the things around me. I hardly do that. Appreciate things. Which is sad. Therefore, I pity myself.
But then, is it such a prerequisite? Do I really have to be free of everything else, the past and the future, before I can learn to appreciate everything that I have?
I would say no. But I still wonder why it seems like I never had the time to appreciate "stuff". It is not a problem that only I struggle with. I think everyone at some point in their lives failed to appreciate things and just take everything for granted.
I am having the dilemma of choosing which is better: living in the present or living in the future. I have always been told to plan ahead. To prepare for the future. It is hard for my stubborn self to grasp the idea of living for the moment. Honestly, I think it is bullshit. But then maybe that is what separates me from _____. Blank because I do not know what it is supposed to be. From happiness? Success? Contentment? I am not really sure. I guess that is the missing link. It is funny when you think about it, I do not even know what is missing so how can I begin searching for it?
"One is loved because one is loved. No reason is needed for loving."
It is so simply stated, you just have to love it. I never really thought about it but it is true, why do ask people the reason why they love us? I suppose it is because we feel insecure and need their reassurance. For some, maybe it is for the ego. But then, why do we need to hear the reassurances? Why do we still feel insecure? Is it not enough that they say that they love us once or twice? Because by then you know that they do love you whether or not they say it out loud or justify its existence.
Some would argue that it feels good to hear an "I love you" from the one you love. Precisely my point. You already know that he loves you, you do not need an "I love you" from him to know that he loves you because you feel it. You are aware of it. You are ignited just by the thought of it. And because you feel the same way. You and your entire being.
"So, I love you because the entire universe conspired to help me find you."
Haaay... Yun na yun.
"People are afraid to pursue their most important dreams, because they feel that they do not deserve them, or that they will be unable to achieve them. We their hearts, become fearful just thinking of loved ones who go away forever, or of moments that could have been good but were not, or of treasures that might have been found but were forever hidden in the sands. Because, when these things happen, we suffer terribly."
It is true is it not? We had rather not do anything if it means that there is a possibility that we might end up getting hurt. That is so pessimistic. But that is how we think. At least, that is how I think. Is it self-preservation? A defense mechanism? We are so fearful of how bad we are going to feel even though we do not have any idea of what we are supposed to feel. Why do preempt ourselves?
Does the "pre-emptive strike" make us happy? Or does it leave us with even more difficult questions of what could have beens?
"My heart is afraid that it will have to suffer." "Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself."
What we need is courage. The courage to face suffering. If we continue to be cowards, then we will never have a chance to learn, because we do not have anything to learn from. No experiences, good or bad. Then again, who ever did have the guts to take on suffering face to face? We all hide ourselves whenever suffering knocks down the door. Who would not?
I do not know how to resolve this.
"There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve: the fear of failure."
Fear of failure. How many times have I felt it? I never counted the tears I had shed for it. And all in one sem of law school. I have often wondered why I fear failure. There are several reasons: my parents, my friends, myself. I just cannot bear to think that I let them all down.
The question then would be: how does one remove the fear?
I think I have an answer, I just do not know how to do it. You must go ahead despite all the obstacles. Even if you are 99% likely to fail, you must continue. The more you must strive harder. Even if all the odds are against you.
And if it is your dream, your Personal Legend, nothing should stop you. Not even failure.
"That is what alchemists do. They show that, when we strive to become better than we are, everything around becomes better, too."
Maybe we should all be alchemists then.
