A New Find

The alchemist knew the legend of Narcissus, a youth who knelt
daily beside a lake to contemplate his own beauty. He was so fascinated
by himself that, one morning, he fell into the lake and drowned. At the
spot where he fell, a flower was born, which was called the Narcissus.
But this is not how the author of the book ended the story.
He said that when Narcissus died, the goddesses of the forest appeared and found the lake, which had been fresh water, transformed into a lake of salty tears.

“Why do you weep?” the goddesses asked.

“I weep for Narcissus,” the lake replied.

“Ah, it is no surprise that you weep for Narcissus,” they said, “for though we always pursued him in the forest, you alone could contemplate his beauty close at hand.”
“But…was Narcissus beautiful?” the lake asked.

“Who better than you to know that?” the goddesses said in wonder. “After all, it was by your banks that he knelt each day to contemplate himself?”

“I weep for Narcissus, but I never noticed that Narcissus was beautiful. I weep because, each time he knelt beside my banks, I could see, in the depths of his eyes, my own beauty reflected.”

Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist

If any of you are looking for a good book I highly recommend The Alchemist.

My good friend Chelsea let me borrow it and I loved every second of the story about a young shepard boy and his quest to find his personal treasure or rather his "personal legend."

I know, I know...sounds cliche. Just trust me though, it's not!

It is material proof that people of all walks of life and religious backgrounds can be inspired by God. Read it.

The secret is here in the present. If you pay attention to the
present, you can improve upon it. And, if you improve on the present, what comes later will also be better. Forget about the future, and live each day according to the teachings, confident that God loves his children. Each day, in itself, brings with it an eternity.

Paulo Coelho, The Alchemist