Personal Legend: The Alchemist - Essay Example

There is more to life than just an ordinary life. Human beings have a divine purpose that transcends the ordinary life. It is a special purpose that allows them to be in oneness with the Universe. This special purpose is known as the personal legend, which everyone should strive to attain it. Different scholars have talked of the importance of the personal legend and how it applies to our lives but none has managed to describe it in a comprehensive manner as Paulho Coelho in his spiritual awakening novel The Alchemist. It is a book that spurs every reader to go for what makes his or her heart sing. It is a concept that resonates in my life as a go-getter who believes in nothing that can stop me from achieving my goals no matter what comes across.

Every human being has an inner spark that pushes him or her to pursue higher goals in life. To some, it is the problems and challenges they face as children that drive them to pursue greater things in life. In my case, growing up in foster homes between the ages of 5 and 9 and the realization that my parents never went beyond high school gave me the impetus to explore education as a key ingredient to success in life. I never wanted to repeat the same mistakes my parents made by not valuing education and thus made sure that it was a priority in my life. I made it my personal legend that I would push on towards attaining high education standards and improving my life and that of my family.

As Paulho Coelho states in his book The Alchemists, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it. Each thing has to transform itself into something better, and to acquire a new personal legend, until, someday, the soul of the world becomes only one thing (Coelho p.22). My relentless pursuit of education as a critical component towards my success has made me work hard to ensure that I achieve what my parents failed to achieve; a better education and better for life. I pushed on with my goal of aiming towards a better education despite the challenges of coming from a poor background. This culminated into me attaining a position as a medical assistant at one of the hospitals. It was a fulfilling job as it gave me the opportunity to not only better my life but that of others. However, there was a higher desire for me to enhance my education to a Bachelors degree in nursing, which I believed would be a better way to realize my personal legend.

Achieving ones personal legend is not devoid of challenges. There are challenges and obstacles that come in our way and may lead to some giving up on the goal altogether. However, those who persists in their pursuit towards the personal goal reap greater rewards. My journey towards a better education that would help me improve my life and that of others has been a rough one. It is one that has called for great resilient and dedication. For instance, being a mother of three boys and wife to a husband working in the military has been one of the biggest challenge towards my pursuit for a Bachelors degree in Nursing. I remember the first time I tried going back to college I failed because I could not manage my duties at work and also taking care of the boys. The challenges took a toll on my academic life leading to my failure to achieve the goal. Despite all the challenges, I have stuck with the philosophy that the challenges are just like the fire that purified metals in the Alchemists quest of turning metal into gold. I am now using the challenges as vessels and tools that will sharpen and embolden me in my quest towards attaining the degree.

Enrolling to the college to pursue a Bachelors degree in nursing remains the biggest decision I ever made in life. It has helped me to acquire a sense of satisfaction both spiritually and emotionally. I feel connected to the world by using my education within the nursing profession to help others lead better lives. Being my desire to use education and help others through my profession as a nurse, I feel my pursuit for that goal is my mission on earth (Coelho p.115) and I will do all I can to attain it.

In conclusion, I believe that every human being has to pursue his or her treasure in life. All one has to do is to trust ones inner voice and do what the heart yearns for as a source of happiness. To me that is the key aspect of the personal legend. I trusted and followed the omens that guided me towards a penchant for education in nursing as a tool through which I could change the world. I believe that God had prepared the path for me to follow. It is a journey that I am cherishing and I can clearly point out that am on the verge of fulfilling and attaining my personal legend of using education and nursing to improve my life and that of others in the world.

Works Cited

Paulo, Coelho. Alchemist. DC Books, 2007.