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90
Warrior
of the Light
Issue nº 90
Manual for Climbing Mountains
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A] Choose the mountain you want to climb: don’t pay attention
to what other people say, such as “that one’s more
beautiful” or “this one’s easier”. You’ll
be spending lots of energy and enthusiasm to reach your objective,
so you’re the only one responsible and you should be sure
of what you’re doing.
B] Know how to get close to it: mountains are often seen from
far off – beautiful, interesting, full of challenges.
But what happens when we try to draw closer? Roads run all around
them, flowers grow between you and your objective, what seemed
so clear on the map is tough in real life. So try all the paths
and all the tracks until eventually one day you’re standing
in front of the top that you yearn to reach.
C] Learn from someone who has already been up there: no matter
how unique you feel, there is always someone who has had the
same dream before you and ended up leaving marks that can make
your journey easier; places to hang the rope, trails, broken
branches to make the walking easier. The climb is yours, so
is the responsibility, but don’t forget that the experience
of others can help a lot.
D] When seen up close, dangers are controllable: when you begin
to climb the mountain of your dreams, pay attention to the surroundings.
There are cliffs, of course. There are almost imperceptible
cracks in the mountain rock. There are stones so polished by
storms that they have become as slippery as ice. But if you
know where you are placing each footstep, you will notice the
traps and how to get around them.
E] The landscape changes, so enjoy it: of course, you have to
have an objective in mind – to reach the top. But as you
are going up, more things can be seen, and it’s no bother
to stop now and again and enjoy the panorama around you. At
every meter conquered, you can see a little further, so use
this to discover things that you still had not noticed.
F] Respect your body: you can only climb a mountain if you give
your body the attention it deserves. You have all the time that
life grants you, as long as you walk without demanding what
can’t be granted. If you go too fast you will grow tired
and give up half way there. If you go too slow, night will fall
and you will be lost. Enjoy the scenery, take delight in the
cool spring water and the fruit that nature generously offers
you, but keep on walking.
G] Respect your soul: don’t keep repeating “I’m
going to make it”. Your soul already knows that, what
it needs is to use the long journey to be able to grow, stretch
along the horizon, touch the sky. An obsession does not help
you at all to reach your objective, and even ends up taking
the pleasure out of the climb. But pay attention: also, don’t
keep saying “it’s harder than I thought”,
because that will make you lose your inner strength.
H] Be prepared to climb one kilometer more: the way up to the
top of the mountain is always longer than you think. Don’t
fool yourself, the moment will arrive when what seemed so near
is still very far. But since you were prepared to go beyond,
this is not really a problem.
I] Be happy when you reach the top: cry, clap your hands, shout
to the four winds that you did it, let the wind - the wind is
always blowing up there - purify your mind, refresh your tired
and sweaty feet, open your eyes, clean the dust from your heart.
It feels so good, what was just a dream before, a distant vision,
is now part of your life, you did it!
J] Make a promise: now that you have discovered a force that
you were not even aware of, tell yourself that from now on you
will use this force for the rest of your days. Preferably, also
promise to discover another mountain, and set off on another
adventure.
K ] Tell your story: yes, tell your story! Give your example.
Tell everyone that it’s possible, and other people will
then have the courage to face their own mountains.
Copyright
@ 2005 by Paulo Coelho
Warrior of Light Online, published by www.paulocoelho.com.br
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