The Alchemist Essay: Fulfilling Free Will to Pursue Destiny

November 28, 2019

        What is the relationship between destiny and free will? Can people balance those two ends of pursuit at the same time? There are some important points in the novel, The Alchemist. The only thing that people can do right now is to determine their free will because they cannot find out their destiny without fulfilling personal free will. In addition, the omens will appear at the right time to make people gain insights on how to continually pursue destiny. For the reasons, it is easier to change the outcome of free will than it is destiny.

        It is clear that all the things that anyone can do right now are to determine their free will. In the novel, Santiago decides to become a shepherd and go on his journey to find out his destiny, although his parents ask him to be a priest. At that time, he doesn't know anything about his destiny. But he follows his heart, becomes a shepherd, and starts travelling. When Santiago is hesitating to initial the journey to find his treasure which he dreams twice, he meets the king of Salem whose name is Melchizedek. Melchizedek encourages Santiago to make decisions by himself, rather than relying on the answers taken from others, and he says, “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, 22). As we learn from their conversations, fate puts a desire in Santiago’s heart and this desire consequently leads to the initiation of his adventure. People’s free will which can be managed and performed right now is more specific than the unknown destiny. In other words, people can do whatever they dream of at any time, even though they do not know exactly about their destiny. Personal free will is much easier to be actualized. As Melchizedek mentions, “People are capable, at any time in their lives, of doing what they dream of” (Coelho, 23).

    In addition, people cannot find out their destiny without fulfilling their free will. In the novel, Melchizedek talks to Santiago that there is a baker at one corner of the plaza who wants to travel just like him. Although the baker and Santiago both want to travel, the baker makes a different decision and buys a bakery. Most people prefer to establish a stable life. However, different from most of the people, Santiago makes a decision to be himself and wants to fulfill his free will. On the way of his journey towards finding out the treasure, he indeed faces a lot of difficulties. He is betrayed by his new friend, all of his money is taken. After this incident, he sees the crystal shop and decides to work for the crystal merchant to make money for buying sheep. In one of the conversations between Santiago and the merchant, the merchant talks to Santiago, “Maktub” (Coelho, 59), which means everything is written in advance. If free will is against destiny, the consequence which people get will not be positive. Since whatever people do, destiny is written. Even though, the free will that people are owning has already been decided by density. Therefore, people don’t even have to overthink if their decisions are leading them on the right track. On Santiago’s journey, he meets a girl and an alchemist in the desert. They finally become important people in his life. Santiago loves the girl at first sight and he promises the girl that he will come back after finding out his treasure. When the alchemist and Santiago are crossing the desert and almost get out of the desert, they meet the tribesmen who ask Santiago and the alchemist to turn themselves into the wind. After three days, the situation is described in the novel as follows, “Santiago reaches through to the Soul of the World, and saw that it was a part of the Soul of God” (Coelho, 152). Santiago's destiny is a part of the soul of the world. He can communicate with other elements and perform miracles. If Santiago didn't leave his home to travel and search for his treasure, he can't find out what exactly his destiny should be. Apparently, people cannot find out their destiny without fulfilling free will.

        Along people are finding destiny, the omens will appear at the right time and tell them something and also guide them on how to fulfill their free will. Being described in this novel, “At a certain point in our lives, we lose control of what’s happening to us, and our lives become controlled by fate” (Coelho, 18). It is difficult to change destiny. In particular, people lose control of what is happening to them because they believe their lives are partially controlled by destiny. Among the first sections of the novel, Santiago decides to sell all of his sheep to gain sufficient money to start his journey. Fortunately, his friend buys almost all of Santiago’s sheep which is a good omen. Just like Melchizedek emphasizes, all the universe will help people when they really want something. At the end of the journey, Santiago meets some people and one of them tells Santiago that he dreamed that he travelled to Spain and found a treasure. But he was not as stupid as Santiago to cross an entire desert to find an unsure treasure. Those people laugh at Santiago, however, he doesn’t care about their thought as he knows what he is doing and where his dream is. On the contrary, Santiago feels delighted since he knows where he could find his treasure. The universe will help people by showing up some omens, but not everyone can notice while the omens appear in his or her life. The person who talks to Santiago misses his treasure and he might not even know that he has missed it. There are critical differences between that person and Santiago. That person doesn’t notice the omens in his life and also he doesn’t really want to fulfill his dream because it is only a dream. In contrast to most people who complain about why omens do not appear in their lives, Santiago is crazy and always follows his heart to fulfill his free will. This exactly the main reason that he can finally find out his treasure and his destiny as well.

        Overall, it is more difficult for a person to change destiny than to change free will. Actualizing free will is the process of finding destiny. Destiny itself cannot be contacted without the events contributing to their dream that people choose to happen. Also, omens will appear naturally to strengthen the outcomes of free will. No matter how much you know about your destiny, making an effort to accomplish the things that you want to do is most important. This pursuit of personal dreams can definitely help you to find out your destiny.

Going back to England

        I want to go back to England. 

       The reason why I say “go back” instead of “go to” is because I was born in London, England. Although I had lived in London for six years, I am a Taiwanese because England is “Jus sanguinis” rather than “Jus soli”. 

       Thinking about England, there are a lot of popular tourist destinations, such as Big Ben, Coca-Cola London Eye, the Tower of London, the Tower Bridge, River Thames, Hyde Park and so on. The place which I most want to visit again is Birkbeck, University of London where my father studied his Ph.D. When I was a little girl, I frequently went to his college with him. For that reason, I do have a lot of memories there. It is a very important place for me! In addition to the buildings where I visited frequently when I was young, I would like to meet some people there, including my father’s supervisor. Her name is Jennifer. Now, you can guess why my name is Jennifer.

        The second place that attracts me is the Tower Bridge because the sights there are very impressive. Tower Bridge is the most popular attraction that brings thousands of people from all over the world every day. There is a traditional English nursery rhyme named: "London Bridge Is Falling Down". This nursery rhyme has been spread throughout the world, meaning that almost everyone who comes from different countries can sing it together without language barriers. However, tourists often confuse the Tower Bridge and the London Bridge, for their names. Actually, the bridge that can fall is Tower Bridge rather than London Bridge. Tower Bridge has two levels. There are two walkways on the upper level, whereas the lower level is mainly for vehicles. The special feature of the walkways is made of a transparent glass floor and ceiling mirror. The lower level is special, too, because it can allow the river traffic to pass by raising to 83 degrees.

        When you are on the bridge, you can see the River Thames and the new building--The Shard. My family had a boat ride when I was young. We were impressed and enjoyed all the fun of the river. I still can remember the enjoyable feelings when the wind gently blew on my face. It was an afternoon in the spring when I was five. Just like the time for English afternoon tea, we did have a most wonderful day during my stay in England. Different from the experience described above, The Shard is a landmark that I never visited before, because this amazing building was open in July 2012. It was three years after I returned to Taiwan. This time, I collected much information to arrange our next family vacation and learned from the website that its open-air observation deck on the 72nd floor is quite different from the one of Top of the Rock which I visited in New York this summer. So, I would like to visit this great destination on our next vacation.

        Although I was born in England, I haven’t attended the Warner Bros. Studios Tour London: The Making of Harry Potter. Absolutely, this will be the higher priority of our family vacation. When growing up to a teenager, I started reading a series of Harry Potter fictions, by which J. K. Rowling has won multiple awards and sold more than 500 million copies. We will be able to learn from many behind-the-scenes of the Harry Potter films that cannot be read from the books. Also, in its size, the place is perhaps the only permanent filmmaking exhibit that can be kept and maintained in the world. I think it will be the most brilliant experience of my life if I have the opportunity to go to the Warner Bros. Studios.

        Travel is the transition from one place where we tired of to another place where others tired of. We can find out and establish new living habits and also try to learn about different cultures when travelling to another country. England is the country that I long to visit again. Several years ago, I met a lot of kind people and went sightseeing for many famous local attractions. All of the unique memories that were experienced from an elder gentleman living in the attic upstairs, walking to supermarkets in the snowy winter, nesting on the corner of the sofa and watching the Doctor Who excitingly, and the kindergarten teacher who spoke in British English, have enriched my current life and they are far from the local experiences after I went back to study in Taiwan. During this family vacation, my younger brother can’t know what I had learned before, but he could still enrich his growth more internationally, rather than just owning the local life in Taiwan. This family vacation will not only make our family feel relaxed and get close to each other but also give a great connection between our past stories and the current lives of my family, including myself and my brother.

Journal: I will change myself...

        If I knew that nobody would judge me, I would pluck up my courage to initiate my learning in street dance. To me, dance is a kind of art. Talking about street dance, the most important element of excellent performance is the feelings that a dancer expresses and spreads around the people who are watching. In addition to the sense of happiness that the dancer is experiencing, the audiences would benefit straightway from the strong emotions that are delivered from the rhythm through dance. Maybe the audiences are not very familiar with the style of street dance that is performed, but they are likely to feel joyful. This feeling which is exchanged naturally between the dancer and the audience is truthful and original. 

       Shyness often made me experience uncomfortable when I was asked to express myself in front of people. Last year, my friend who was one of the b-boys in a dancing crew, Dream Runnerz, invited me to participate in an event that was focused on breaking (a street dance style).  We went to the competition and had a great time. The competition attracted many people to attend because the dancers in that club were well known in Taiwan and their performance is unique. After enjoying the breaking battles, my friend asked me if I would like to become a breaker and learn how to dance on a routine basis. This kind of opportunity was not frequently given to the newcomers and it was nearly impossible to join them without his reference. Surprisingly, I hesitated and did not accept this opportunity although I have been interested in street dance for a long while. I didn’t accept that was caused by my shyness. No matter presenting teamwork or talking about my personal experiences, standing on the stage was indeed a difficult challenge for me. For the reason, if I knew that nobody would judge me, I might have a higher level of confidence to show myself. Because nobody would laugh at me or talk something bad about me, I would concentrate on how to get familiar with and improve the fundamental dance skills, movement, musicality and creativity, rather than worrying about others’ judgments on what I did when practicing. 

        Due to my passion for street dance, I am learning how to overcome the shyness which causes me to lose confidence in the achievement of my dreams. I hope that I have been on the progress toward the establishment of a strong sense of musicality and rhythm. Someday, I would incorporate my feelings into the street dance to develop my style and have the courage to show up my dancing skills in front of people.

Journal: The Sensible Sentence

When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.

- Paulo Coelho

    

        The first time that I saw this beautiful sentence was in Grade 9 when I read the Chinese edition of The Alchemist. The sentence caught my attention and straightway I gained insights into what is happening in my routine life. It was the most difficult time when I was preparing for Comprehensive Assessment Program for Junior High School Students (CAP會考). This is an important examination for the Grade 9 students who are studying in Taiwan because we cannot continue our study in an ideal high school without a great mark in the examination. The examination was the first challenge in my life, so I told myself that everything would be going well if I tried my best to do it. This sentence did help me cope with the stress of overloading study materials that took much of my energy into late adolescence.

    Surprisingly, this sentence rang a bell in Canada while my English teacher was reading the same book to us. However, this time, it appeared in English rather than the first time I met it. Being expressed in a different language, this sentence was still inspiring me and encouraged me to do my best to achieve goals even in the most challenging situations. For example, there were a lot of English terms that I didn’t understand in Chemistry during the first few weeks. Although I had learned most of the materials in Taiwan, the new environment where the study was taking place did make me experience that Chemistry was almost a new subject. I wanted to give up, but I recalled a key point that I had learned from that sentence. Specifically, there are always some solutions to sort out the problem that you are facing in a crisis, thus do not hesitate to seek support from the people around you. Quite different from my previous experience in Taiwan, I began to ask for support from the teachers and classmates. They were friendly and provided prompt responses to deal with the problems that I encountered, just like the sentence I heard in English class. 

    Again, I learned from this experience, if I really want to achieve something, just follow my heart and go forward to face it. Don’t need to worry about the consequences. I will accomplish the things I want and succeed at the end of the story.

Journal: I am thankful for...

        The first thing that I am thankful for is my birth in the UK. This happened 17 years ago when my father decided to pursue his study overseas. Because this decision was made quite suddenly, my pregnant mother hesitated if this was an appropriate time for her to live in an unfamiliar country. This was actually a difficult decision for them, who both could not speak fluent English. However, I do appreciate they gave me the place of my birth in England, where English was created and spread to the world as the global language. That is, my first language is English, although I am still studying in ESL. Also, for the reason, I have a special Chinese name which is directly translated from my English name.

        Secondly, I am thankful for having an opportunity to go back to Taiwan where my parents came from. I am proud of being a Taiwanese because I think Taiwanese people are very kind and they enjoy helping others who are in need. I am fortunate that I can write Chinese characters, making me understand how they evolved from Chinese wisdom. Some Chinese characters are indeed cool that their appearances look like a picture, by which ancient people can communicate more directly. To talk about education in schools, I learned a lot of knowledge that I was forced to learn but they are currently useful for my adjustment to the study in Canada. For example, the metal(金屬) elements on the periodic table in Chemistry, while being presented in Chinese characters, all have a Chinese radical: 金. Just like sodium(鈉), as you can see, the character includes the radical “金” which means that sodium is a metal. However, you can’t recognize the characteristics of elements in English. 

        Finally, the last thing that I am thankful for is that my parents provided me with the opportunity to continue my study in Canada. Several reasons can explain why I am grateful to them for their decision. In addition to the opportunity to improve my English, the establishment of an alternative approach to think and study is important for me. Furthermore, I have made a lot of friends at school. Some friends are hard-working, thus we can study together and learn new things. The others enjoy their life and inspire me on how to relax while I feel anxious about studying. These friends contribute to the important part of my current life.

        The three things which I am thankful to look quite different, but they are all connected to my cultural understanding of how people live and think differently in the global village. So, I guess the next stop of my life journey would be living in the Arctic. If this dream happens, I would be thankful for some person who is not my parents anymore, because that would be a new milestone for me and my own family (perhaps, with my husband and children).

Journal: Niagara Falls

My best day is the day when our family went to Niagara Falls this summer. Before that day, we just arrived in Canada and we're looking for our accommodation in Toronto. Without a clear choice regarding where to live, my mother decided to go for a vacation to relax the stress that annoyed us. 

     We started our trip in the early morning. The sun was bright and the sky was blue. It was a wonderful day for the whole-day trip. At the first stop, we saw the breathtaking falls after taking the shuttle bus that connected the Greyhound bus terminal and the main visitor centre in Niagara. There were three falls named Horseshoe Falls, American Falls, and Veil of the Bride Falls. The view was incredibly spectacular, and the weather on that day was sunny enough to see a brilliant rainbow that bridged across the falls. Of course, we could not only stay far away from the falls to see such awe-inspiring water, and we took a boat travelling toward the charming fall. When the boat was close to the falls, the water was falling just beside us, making all of the tourists could not take their eyes off the gorgeous falls. Even I couldn’t capture the magnificent view because the camera would get wet, the experience was still memorable for me and I will always keep this view in my mind.

After seeing the falls, we went to our next stop, Butterfly Conservatory. Thousands of butterflies were flying up and down in the conservatory that made my younger brother feel very excited. Because he was very curious and brave, many different kinds of butterflies stayed on the leaves and flowers that did attract him to explore their various characteristics. Surprisingly, he even let the butterflies stop on his hands! In contrast to his enjoyable experience, I was a little bit afraid of them because they were too many for me. I can still remember that I hoped to go to the next stop as soon as possible!

We got on another shuttle bus arriving another stop where we took the Whirlpool Aero Car. The cable car transported us through the air above a rapid stream, and we saw a remarkable view of the Niagara Whirlpool during the ten-minute tour. After this tour, we saw beautiful fireworks in the night. It was particularly fortunate for us cause this unexpected firework show wasn’t in our schedule. And also, we saw a colourful light show which made the falls being transformed into a feature which was completely different from those we saw during the day time.

This trip is unforgettable to me because I experienced a spectacular nature. It let me think about if we destroy the environment, we will make the next generation of people lose these experiences. Without seeing the water falling, marvellous forest, and various species of animals, some important experiences would be absent from their life. So, we should protect the earth, to keep the next generation see this beautiful nature.