I was writing a short story when I suddenly have this writer's block I always try to get rid of. It is frustrating when you have a lot to write yet your hands and mind won't cooperate. But I perceived that as an opportunity to read.
I went to my mini bookshelf and browsed through my collections. I picked a book I've finished reading some time ago, titled The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. The Alchemist is a good read but I have no intention to write a review on it. Instead, I want to share a part which I think is interesting. Here goes:
The alchemist picked up a book that someone in the caravan had brought. Leafing through the pages, he found a story about Narcissus.
The alchemist knew about 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 was 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 waters.
"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!"
The lake was silent for some time. Finally it said:
"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."
"What a lovely story," the alchemist thought.
(excerpt taken from The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, pp. xx-xxi)
Don't you think the story is lovely too? I think it is a lovely story. *smiles*
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2 comments:
.... nape i rase river tue pon narcissist gak? lol.
Yup, I think so too.
Cuma yang menareknye, orang laen sume kagum dengan kechantekan Narcissus tapi lake tue tak pandang pon apa yang orang laen pandang, yet nampak kechantekannye sendiri.
Everyone is beautiful inside, if not on the outside. Ehehe~
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