So I found another three books by Paulo Coelho at the local library, I got all of them and not satified by reading a Brazilian author in English I now have ALL his e-books in Portuguese, so bear with me because the name Paulo Coelho will repeat many times still to come.
This book was written in 2012 and I could not write about the plot line better than wikipedia, so here it comes:
The action is placed in 1099 in Jerusalem while the city awaits the invasion of the crusaders. Inside the city’s walls, men and women gathered to hear the wise words of a mysterious Greek man– known as the Copt. The people begin with questions about their fears, true enemies, defeat and struggle; they contemplate the will to change, and the virtues of loyalty and solitude; and ultimately turn to questions of beauty, sex and elegance, love, wisdom and what the future holds.
It's a beautiful book that probably should be read every now and again, probably a good gift to give someone. It makes one reflect about its own life.
A few quotes I liked:
“For those who are not frightened by the solitude, everything will have a different taste. In solitude, they will discover the love that might otherwise arrive unnoticed. In solitude, they will understand and respect the love that left them. In solitude, they will be able to decide whether it is worth asking that lost love to come back or if they should simply let it go and set off along a new path. In solitude, they will learn that saying ‘No’ does not always show a lack of generosity and that saying ‘Yes’ is not always a virtue. And those who are alone at this moment, need never be frightened by the words of the devil: ‘You’re wasting your time.’ Or by the chief demon’s even more potent words: ‘No one cares about you.’ The Divine Energy is listening to us when we speak to other people, but also when we are still and silent and able to accept solitude as a blessing. And when we achieve that harmony, we receive more than we asked for”
“If you are never alone, you cannot know yourself”
“And if I'm alone in bed, I will go to the window, look up at the sky, and feel certain that loneliness is a lie, because the Universe is there to keep me company"
“Solitude is not the absence of company, but the moment when our soul is free to speak to us and help us decide what to do with our life”
“A rose dreams of enjoying the company of bees, but none appears. The sun asks: “Aren’t you tired of waiting?” “Yes,” answers the rose, “but if I close my petals, I will wither and die"
“Because we managed to keep our heart open, despite the pain. Because we realized that the person who left us did not take the sun with them or leave darkness in their place”
“The great wisdom of life is to realize that we can be the master of the things that try to enslave us”
And my favorite:
“When everything seems to be going well and your dream is almost within your gasp, that is when you must be more alert than ever. Because when your dream is almost within your grasp, you will be assailed by terrible guilt. You will see that you are about to arrive at a place where very few have ever set foot and you will think that you don’t deserve what life is giving you. You will forget all the obstacles you overcame, all that you suffered and sacrificed. And because of that feeling of guilt, you could unconsciously destroy everything that took you so long to build"
(From Farnham library)
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