To pass around a piece of art, and start a conversation on the page is what I believe to be one of the most fulfilling things this planet offers.
Book cover. PHOTO Amanda Dettmann“Warning: Do not read this book.
Just kidding, go ahead and read it. What have you got to lose?
I am scared to read this book, to be honest. Because it feels like people telling me to go to Italy to find myself. Will I find myself in a single book? I know that’s a lot of pressure. But I’m ready to dig deep.
Okay wait, no, this book is not going to change my life. I know that. But it will maybe make me see something I haven’t seen ever before. That, is the beauty of waking up and living; not changing but becoming.”
These were the words I wrote a year ago inside the first page of The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. I wrote them at the beginning of the novel, after reading all the way to the end.
Today, I borrowed back The Alchemist from my friend Thomas Vestuto on campus who I studied abroad with in Florence for a semester. I haven’t looked at this book since a year ago, where I read it on buses to Budapest, near the end of my four-month journey hopping between countries and eating more gelato than I can count.
Our rule?
To write comments in the margins as we read. This meant the more we passed the book along between people, the more minds connected on the page. While influenced by Coelho’s words, I was also influenced by those who had written their thoughts before me. Different pens, different colors, different styles, different signatures. Different readings in different locations and times around the world. Different takeaways at the beginning and end. Different dedications to each other and life lessons to pass on.
Our names on the opening page. PHOTO Amanda DettmannFour of us have shared this same book now. Four handwritings. Four ways of seeing the world.
As the story goes, a young shepherd boy explores what his “personal legend” means; how obstacles quickly fuel risk, adventure, doubt, and hope. How does the universe lead us to our destiny? Is there such a thing as destiny? How much say do we get in achieving our dreams?
We all read the same book and marked it to extremes. Twisted our brains to pull out new perspectives. And yet every page we contradicted ourselves, each other, saw the beautiful in the ugly, and flipped chaos on its head. This book made us question everything, and struck a chord with each of us in unique, disruptive, and life-affirming ways.
As Coelho the author says, “The story of one person is the story of everyone, and one man’s quest is the quest of all of humanity, which is why I believe The Alchemist continues all these years later to resonate with people from different cultures all around the world, touching them emotionally and spiritually, equally, without prejudice” (forward, Coelho).
Looking at this shared book today made me think about so many things. How changed I am after traveling abroad but not changed in my values. Most of those are strengthened. How I wrote some snarky comments in the margins that don’t sound like the me now. How some of my written comments blew my mind all over again—what parts I wrote “WOW” for and what parts made me confused and angry because they didn’t fit my exact way of thinking.
And looking back makes me realize that the Alchemist and his lesson change on every sentence, every page, every read through.
A “story map,” I call it today.
A story map of studying abroad with friends. Meeting strangers from the smallest parts of the world in tiny art galleries. Singing “Happy birthday” to strangers on the longest cobblestone streets. Giving hugs in the dark. Closing our eyes in the light. Sitting on bridges, feet dangling over endless possibility reflected back, laces like pasta strands or hands reaching out to the water we all swim in.
A story map of today. Where we are physically today. Where are feet are grounded. Want to be grounded. Where we are still taking off, like cutting holes in cardboard boxes for space travel in our backyards.
If only we did this as adults like we did as children: to never stop dreaming.
Thinking bigger. PHOTO Amanda DettmannHere are some experiences from the other three readers I got a chance to share The Alchemist with:
“I always pass my books around with all my writing in it, but it’s especially important for this book. Often this book can be found in the self-help section of stores due to its direct messaging on how to approach life especially when traveling. I find it so thought-provoking with little connections that tie up loose ends in my mind or huge life takeaways that I want to respond to immediately. I love seeing others’ notes to see what they found as important connections or how they respond. It adds to the conversation that the book is starting for its readers” – Steven LaMaita
“A friend who previously went abroad before me bought me The Alchemist to read while I was away. It’s a book about a traveler who learns to understand the world without speaking the language of the winds and stars. Think about it: a student who was has never studied outside their comfort zone should be able to relate to this very well. The book took a while for me to connect to, but once I did I zoomed right through. My friend who bought the book left me notes, and suggested I leave notes, and then pass along the book so others can add their notes. The book allowed me to see the world in a new light and I commented where a connection clicked for me. When my friends read the book, they each added their own experiences, insights, and connections and the story once again changed. This experience allowed me to connect with my friends and get a better idea of how they view life. There is something truly magical about the human connection. Everyone lives different lives and experiences different things. But many people experience the same thoughts and feelings just in different ways. Listen more than you speak and you will learn a lot” – Thomas Vestuto
“I changed by experiencing this book not as an individual but as part of a collective. I’m lucky to say that by passing this book around while traveling, it became more so an experience that I was able to share with others rather than keep to myself. Getting the chance to read a book with the notes of my predecessors taught me something that no other book could, the importance of perspective. Seeing how others perceived something that I perceived totally differently really opened my eyes to just how differently people can think. This changed me for the better while traveling because it made me think twice about every situation I was in while dealing with other people’s perspectives. The most rewarding part of this was being able to contribute and build on something that impacted me so significantly. It was extremely humbling to be able to participate in the experience that was this book and continue that very tradition forward” – Brandon Potenza
The treasure box. PHOTO Amanda DettmannSo I leave you with this:
To pass around a piece of art, engage with, and start a conversation on the page is what I believe to be one of the most fulfilling things this planet offers, especially while traveling abroad. To twist ourselves and see the Alchemist as a little boy. As an old man. As ourselves. Because we’re all transformers, each and every thing around us. We turn beans into a cup of coffee. Rhythm into love. Music into solace. Pencil led into a story.
So find a book. And a couple of friends. Or strangers. Maybe it’s between five different countries. Maybe 5 different states. And start talking on the page. And then meet up all together five years later at a diner, or in a park, or walking dogs on a bike path in the middle of Oklahoma. People’s scribbled minds you’ve been reading in green highlighter or in chunky purple marker will now be even brighter. You will have all read a story together, felt suffocated and free at times from the same characters, and you will all come away with something. It could be something so small, that you like the scenes in the desert and think about how Coelho describes sand. It could be something so big you feel like you’ll never be able to implement it into your life: Maybe destiny is real, but you can decide to get out of bed in the morning and water the dirt into something that turns green. You can choose to teach others. To spread kindness. To stretch higher than your shoulders believed they could go. All the way past the trees…
You’re The Alchemist.
Do with it as you please.
Birds & words. PHOTO Amanda DettmannQuotes I found today in the margins of the book (stuff we wrote while traveling!)
“I’m a firm believer that everything happens for a reason; BUT the choices we make—everything we do right and wrong—lead us to exactly where we are supposed to be.” – Thomas Vestuto
“Fear is what makes you feel alive; conquering fear is the purpose of being alive.” – Brandon Potenza
“You realize how good home is once you leave. Home is found by leaving.” – Amanda Dettmann
“The real treasure is within us. If we understand our feelings, emotions, thoughts, motivation, and action, we will not need to constantly depend on people, things, or places to provide happiness.” – Steven LaMaita
Many minds on a single page. PHOTO Amanda Dettmann