Intimately Coelho

I must have been around 21 when I first encountered Paulo Coelho, on that fateful Maundy Thursday when I holed myself in the old Powerbooks branch in Pasay Road—a stack of books, a notebook, and a pen in tow—and hid on the shelf behind the Religion section so that I could copy lines from the books without being harassed by the Powerbooks staff.

I took out from the shelves a copy of The Alchemist without knowing what it was about, and from that instant I was hooked. I copied some lines onto my black notebook (with multi-colored gel pens), and then, shortly thereafter, bought my own copy. That was the beginning of my tumultuous journey into self-discovery.

So now, six years later, I am pleased to have discovered Paulo’s blog and to know him and his words more intimately. Apparently, this man’s words still have a huge effect on me: as long as I read them, I discover answers to questions that I had long since forgotten, and I discover new possibilities to explore. I share them with you here.

Issue n°145: As if it were the first time

“I would like to believe that I am going to look on this new year as if it were the first time that 365 days have unfolded before my eyes. To see the people around me with surprise and amazement, happy to discover that they are by my side and sharing something so often mentioned and so seldom understood, called love…”

Read more here

© 2007 Niña Terol