Following your Heart
“Well then I’ll be a shepherd!”
His father said no more. The next day, he gave his son a pouch that held three ancient Spanish coins… and some place to sleep every night of his life.”(Coelho 9)
This quote shows the determination that Santiago posses which help him to achieve his destiny. Santiago wants to follow through with his dreams so he does all that he can to do so. The protagonist in the Alchemist is a young shepherd boy who has a dream that gives, him the insight to leave Andalusia for Egypt. He meets many of people throughout his whole journey to Egypt, like the Alchemist, the love of his life, also many others that helped to encourage him to fulfill his destiny. Santiago relies on his adaptations, reliability, and ambitions that he depends on to achieve the destiny that he ventured out in.
Santiago had to adapt to every decision that he made throughout the journey of finding his life, but they all led to both good and bad consequences, all of which he had to live with. He would have to learn from all of his mistakes, which would help him make better decisions in the future that would benefit him. Santiago was discussing with his Father, what he wanted to do in his future. Santiago wanted to see the world, so he decided to become a shepherd since he liked to travel. Santiago’s Father was disappointed with his decision but he had to make do with the change in his future and his son’s. Even though the Father didn’t agree with Santiago he had faith and trust of better decisions in the future. Both Santiago and his Father had to cope with the decision since Santiago had already started preparing to become a priest, Santiago started in his childhood, by learning very valuable skills like reading and writing. Santiago goes out to achieve his destiny so he decides to get his dream interpreted. So he meets the Gypsy Lady and in order to have his dream interpreted he must swear to give her one tenth of the treasure if he finds the treasure. Santiago hesitated on the decision that he was about to make, since the decision had to decided on the spot, so swore that he would give her a tenth of the treasure that he might find. The gypsy Lady said that his dream was very difficult to interpret so she insisted on a part of the treasure. She interpreted the dream, but Santiago was disappointed to find out what he already knew, which was to go to the pyramids. Santiago wished he wouldn’t have made that decision but there was nothing else he could do since he had already sworn. One of the toughest parts of his journey was when he saw Fatima the love of his life for the last time. Fatima and Santiago used to meet at the whale everyday and to talk. But when Santiago told Fatima the reason he’s here was to find his destiny, Fatima didn’t want to stop him from pursuing his dreams. Fatima said “That’s why I want you to continue toward your goal…Love required them to stay with the people they loved.”(93) Throughout the conversation with Fatima, Santiago knew the time would come when he had to say Goodbye and adapt to life without her. Santiago encounters so many times of his journey when he has to adapt to the decisions that he has made, but as he goes forth in his journey he makes better decisions, which decreases the amount of bad changes in his life. Santiago’s decisions affected him and the people that he made promises or swears to, although Santiago stays with his word, which helps him have a good reputation, reliability that helps him get along with everybody.
Santiago is reliable and keeps his promises to everybody he meets, but he only makes the promises that he can keep. Many People relied on Santiago like the Old Man. The old man, a king who was disguised as an old man talks to Santiago about finding his destiny. They discussed how he has to make decisions on his own and not to rely on other people to make decisions for him. The Old Man said. “Tomorrow at this time bring me one tenth of your flock and I will tell you how to find the hidden treasure. Good Afternoon.”(24) The Old man had to trust that Santiago would come back tomorrow with a tenth of his flock. The next day Santiago met the old man. The Old man said “The next day the boy met the man at noon he bought 6 sheep with him.” (27) This proved to the Old Man that Santiago was going to continue to find his destiny and listen to the recommendations that he made like listening to the omens more closely, so that they could help him. In the same way the Old Man relied on Santiago, the Crystal Merchant also relied on him to help him improve his business. Santiago went to work every day and was always ready for his next assignment, and thinking of ways to make the Crystal shop a more productive business. He thought of giving out beverages and making other displays so that everyone could see so that they would want to come and buy crystal. This benefited both Santiago and the crystal merchant, Santiago shared his ideas, which helped him to make more money so that he could go forth in his destiny. Santiago used the money he made for transportation and to buy his sheep back. Santiago’s reliability was tested with mostly everybody he met, especially the Alchemist. The Alchemist depended on Santiago within the choices that he made, being sure that they were ones that would benefit him throughout his life. Sometimes Santiago wanted to quit and go back home but both the Alchemist and Fatima relied on Santiago to fulfill his destiny. If Santiago would have given up he would have let a lot of people down, he also would have let himself down. Santiago put in a lot of time and effort into finding his destiny. If he gave up he would have lost the advantages that his destiny had for him. Santiago was determined to find his destiny, and he didn’t want to let all of his family, friends, and mentors down. Santiago’s reliability helped Santiago to complete his destiny by having the faith of the people that he met. Santiago showed ambitions by always wanting to go a step further and trying to complete his destiny, which was shown through the reliability that Santiago posed that helped him to complete his destiny
Without the ambitions that Santiago had, it would have been difficult for Santiago to complete his destiny. Santiago had to make sure that he didn’t go astray and to decide to give up since it was too much work. Santiago’s goal was to marry the merchants Daughter, but then he noticed that he wasn’t for her. When the merchant’s daughter and Santiago got into their conversation, she was very curious on how he knew so much with a lower economy occupation. She said. “Why do you tend a flock of sheep? Because I like to travel.”(21) Santiago showed that he doesn’t give up, and that he plans his future not based on what other people want it to be. I could tell from the beginning of the Alchemist that Santiago was a hard worker and that his ambitions were a key part of his life. When Santiago has to explain what he’s pursuing it makes him feel happy that other people are thinking about him, and want to learn more about his destiny, and his journey throughout Egypt. Santiago’s ambitions are shown in all the work that he does. The shopkeeper in the Crystal shop told Santiago his story of seeking his treasure. He said. “When I decided…mystery to me.”(65) This helped Santiago understand that his treasure might turn out different than what he had expected. Santiago had a better understanding of how destinies can turn out. Santiago still wanted to pursue his journey even though the shop keeper’s destiny wasn’t what Santiago wanted in his future. Santiago’s ambitions helped him to achieve his destiny by continuing on in his journey.
Santiago posse’s adaptations, reliability, and ambitions that helped him to achieve his long and tiring journey of finding his destiny. Santiago was tested all throughout his journey, from people wanting him to back down, to getting favors done for them. Santiago withstood all of these heralds and successfully achieved his destiny. Santiago listened to his heart, which gave him the courage to complete his long and learning experience of finding his destiny.
My Journey of Finding my Destiny
Determination allows me not to give up and to always strive for the best of my abilities, when finding my destiny, and also in everyday life. I receive this determination by the encouragement that my parents, given to me when I have struggles at school, and in everyday life. I believe that you have to be willing to be determined, if you want to reveal your destiny. If someone doesn't want to find their destiny, or not taking it seriously then it would be difficult for this person to achieve their destiny with pride. Determination is tested in mysterious ways, it could be in simple questions, and the decisions that you make. These help you to practice your determination as an individual, which helps make you a better person. Being determined gives you hope and a goal to look forward to throughout and when completing your destiny.
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