By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept

by Paulo Coelho

And with love, there are no rules. Some may try to control their emotions and develop strategies for their behavior; others may turn to reading books of advice from “experts” on relationships—but this is all folly. The heart decides, and what it decides is all that really matters. All of us have had this experience. At some point, we have each said through our tears, “I’m suffering for a love that’s not worth it.” We suffer because we feel we are giving more than we receive. We suffer because our love is going unrecognized. We suffer because we are unable to impose our own rules. But ultimately there is no good reason for our suffering, for in every love lies the seed of our growth. The more we love, the closer we come to spiritual experience. Those who are truly enlightened, those whose souls are illuminated by love, have been able to overcome all of the inhibitions and preconceptions of their era. They have been able to sing, to laugh, and to pray out loud; they have danced and shared what Saint Paul called

True love is an act of total surrender.

Pitiful is the person who is afraid of taking risks.

In real life, love has to be possible. Even if it is not returned right away, love can only survive when the hope exists that you will be able to win over the person you desire.

The universe always helps us fight for our dreams, no matter how foolish they may be. Our dreams are our own, and only we can know the effort required to keep them alive.”

But love is always new. Regardless of whether we love once, twice, or a dozen times in our life, we always face a brand-new situation. Love can consign us to hell or to paradise, but it always takes us somewhere. We simply have to accept it, because it is what nourishes our existence. If we reject it, we die of hunger, because we lack the courage to stretch out a hand and pluck the fruit from the branches of the tree of life. We have to take love where we find it, even if that means hours, days, weeks of disappointment and sadness. The moment we begin to seek love, love begins to seek us.

“We are our own greatest surprise,” he

Love can only be found through the act of loving.

“We all perform miracles,” he said. “Jesus said, ‘If our faith is the size of a mustard seed, we will say to the mountain, “Move!” And it will move.’”

“The world itself has a soul, and at a certain moment, that soul acts on everyone and everything at the same time.” “A feminine soul.” He laughed, without saying just what he was laughing about. “By the way, the dogma of the Immaculate Conception was not just a Vatican matter,” he said. “Eight million people signed a petition to the pope, asking that it be recognized. The signatures came from all over the world.” “Is that the first step, Padre?” “What do you mean?” “The first step toward having Our Lady recognized as the incarnation of the feminine face of God? After all, we already accept the fact that Jesus was the incarnation of His masculine side.”

‘Follow your dreams, transform your life, take the path that leads to God. Perform your miracles. Cure. Make prophecies. Listen to your guardian angel. Transform yourself. Be a warrior, and be happy as you wage the good fight. Take risks.’”

The closer we get to God through our faith, the simpler He becomes. And the simpler He becomes, the greater is His presence.

The moment of that kiss contained every happy moment I had ever lived.

“Every person on earth has a gift,” he began. “In some, the gift manifests itself spontaneously; others have to work to discover what it is. I worked with my gift during the four years I was at the seminary.”

“This is why you still bear within yourself the little boy who hid from his parents and cried, the boy who was the weakest in his class. You still bear the marks of that frail little boy who could never find a girlfriend and was never good at sports. You haven’t managed to erase the scars of some injustices committed against you during your life. But what good does that do you? None at all. It does absolutely nothing. It just leaves you with a constant desire to feel sorry for yourself for being the victim of those who were stronger.

Or else makes you want to dress up like an avenger ready to inflict more wounds on those who hurt you.

“It’s certainly human. But it’s neither intelligent nor reasonable. Respect your time on this Earth, understand that God has always pardoned you, and learn to pardon too.”

“‘The energy of hate will take you nowhere, but the energy of pardon which manifests itself through love will manage to change your life in a positive sense.’”