Go the Distance

“When I have been truly searching for my treasure, every day has been luminous, because I’ve known that every hour was part of the dream that I would find it. I’ve discovered things along the way that I never would have seen had I not had the courage to try things that seemed impossible for a shepherd to achieve.” (Coelho Pg.125) In The Alchemist, Santiago is a young spirited shepherd boy that has a repeating dream about The Great Pyramids of Egypt and believes that this is where his treasure is hidden. Santiago bravely ventures out on a quest to find his destiny in life. Throughout his journey, Santiago encounters many people that are connected to his destiny and help him to achieve his goal. He must conquer problems and make careful decisions in order to find his destiny and ultimately, his true love. Santiago is a heroic, dynamic character, who manages to be brave even in the most life threatening situations, trusting others, and staying resilient to finally succeed in finding his destiny.

On Santiago’s journey, he shows bravery in a variety of ways. For example, in the beginning of Santiago’s journey, he was brave enough to leave the glorious Andalusia that he knows well, to go into the unpredictable world to find his true destiny. When Santiago met King Melchizedak, he told Santiago, “In order to find the treasure, you will have to follow the omens. God has prepared a path for everyone to follow. You just have to read the omens that he left for you.” (Pg.28) Santiago was adventurous and trusting enough to believe in Melchizedak. Even though Santiago was only used to the slow life of a shepherd and was unsure of what he was committing himself to or where he would need to go to find his treasure, he was prepared to venture forward to seek his destiny. During his journey, Santiago must stand up to a mysterious man in black on a white horse with a shining blade. We later find out that this was the alchemist. “It is I who dared to do so,” said the boy...It didn’t even occur to the boy to flee. In his heart, he felt a strange sense of joy: he was about to die in pursuit for his destiny.” In the end, the alchemist does not kill Santiago even though he had the ability to do so. The alchemist was testing Santiago’s courage and he passed the test by confronting the Alchemist and not showing fear. Santiago is in control of his actions when decided to stand up to someone that had the ability to kill him. He knew that the world had his future planned and if it decided to end his life, the Soul of the World would be waiting for him. Yet again, he encounters another powerful character, the chief of a tribe. He believes Santiago can turn himself into the wind and Santiago can only be free from the chief and death if he fulfills the chief’s belief. Instead of Santiago backing off and leaving the request behind, Santiago tries to become the wind and with all his might believes in himself and the universe to help him become the wind. I noticed that Santiago always believes in himself when faced with conflict. He stands strong and proud and keeps focused on his journey, not letting anything get in his way, which leads us in Santiago staying resilient and committed to his quest.

Santiago always had obstacles given to him by the universe to test his resilience. The first time Santiago shows his resilience is when his money is stolen and he was losing all hope; he pushes himself to keep moving forward determined to carry on with his journey. Santiago realizes that he can’t lament all his life because he will then never succeed and stay unfulfilled. “He realized that he had to choose between thinking of himself as a poor victim of a thief and as an adventurer in quest of his treasure. “I’m an adventurer, looking for my treasure.”(p.40) With this realization, Santiago goes back to the real world as a more confident person. He recovers quickly and continues on his journey. Santiago then meets a crystal merchant that sees his potential to increase the business in his shop. He asks Santiago to stay with him to work in his shop. As Santiago has no money to get to the Egyptian Pyramids, he willingly accepts the crystal merchant’s offer. Santiago learns that the merchant also had a need to fulfill his own destiny to visit Mecca but was afraid that if he achieved this, his life would already be complete and he would no longer have any reason to live. This fact doesn’t decrease Santiago’s will to find his treasure even after working with the crystal merchant for two years. What the crystal merchant teaches Santiago is that dreams bring meaning to each of us and are perceived in different ways to every individual. Although Santiago did set off to find his destiny, unlike the crystal merchant, Santiago learns from the merchant how to have a better perspective on his dreams and he reinforces his need to trust and believe in himself, which gives him the will to go on.

Reading through the Alchemist, I noticed that Santiago trusts peoples’ word even though he does not know them well. For instance, when Santiago was speaking with King Melchizedak, he trusts him enough to believe what he tells him about the omens, pyramids and destinies. Santiago met Melchizedak alone in the desert and still listened to him and trusted the king enough to leave his sheep to go fulfill his destiny. Another example of Santiago’s trust in new friends is when he meets the alchemist. Santiago listens to his heart where he gains self confidence which allows him to trust his instincts. When Santiago meets the goddess, Fatima, he truly thinks that he should stay with Fatima in the Oasis because he believes she is far more important than his own destiny. Thankfully Santiago accepts that Fatima wants him to find his destiny and come back for her once he has completed his journey. Their love can wait because it is so special that nothing can keep them apart. Fatima and the alchemist both believe that he must go towards his future or else he will never be fully content. The alchemist makes Santiago understand what will happen to him in the future, “You’ll spend the rest of your days knowing that you didn’t pursue your destiny, and that now it’s too late.” (p.115) Santiago never considers that either of them could be lying to him, he listens even though it is not what he wants. This, I believe required great skill and determination.

Santiago does go the distance to fulfill his destiny by leaving his hometown Andalusia, crossing the treacherous deserts of Africa all the way to the Great Egyptian Pyramids to realize his true treasure was in front of him all along. Santiago never gave up and transformed from a simple shepherd to a courageous hero. If he had never gone on the journey, he wouldn’t have gained his bravery without confronting risks or fears, learned that you can trust others if you listen with your heart and wouldn’t have gotten anywhere without being resilient. To find your destiny, you must take that extra leap and release that inner willpower to go the distance.