Paulo Coelho

"A boat is safe in the harbor.  

But this is not the purpose of a boat."

— Paulo Coelho

Brazilian Novelist

1947 -

Commentary

Life is about balance, not extremes.  Sometimes we can be too careful.  We stay in  the harbor and never leave because we are afraid of what might happen out on the open ocean.  Sometimes we throw caution to the wind and venture into dangerous waters.  We behave in a reckless manner that endangers others as well as ourselves.  Too much of anything is harmful.  

So have you been sitting in the harbor too long?  Have you been waiting for the perfect wind so long that you have forgotten how to sail?  Or have you thrown yourself into an adventure without adequate preparation?  Are you seasick from the bumpy ride and looking for a safe harbor?  Life is about balance, not extremes.

Some writers sit on their manuscripts too long, wanting to make sure each word is perfect. I have read stories of writers making changes even as the book is headed to press.  Perfection does not exist.  We can always make changes in the next edition.  Other writers fail to put enough time into perfecting the manuscript.  They are sloppy.  Which are you?

Creative Practice

This week raise the sail on the boat that you have left in the harbor.  Prepare to sail into unknown waters.  Is there a manuscript you can send out that you have been unwilling to submit to the eyes of critics and editors?  Is there a painting that you have been wanting to complete, but have not had the courage?  Set sail for the unknown.



Background on Paulo Coelho

Paulo Coelho was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  He wanted to be a writer but his parents were opposed so he entered law school only to drop out after a year.  He traveled through South America, Mexico, Europe and North Africa.  Upon returning to Brazil, Coelho worked as a journalist, actor, songwriter and theater director.



In 1986, Coelho walked the 500-plus mile pilgrimage on the Road of Santiago de Compostela in northwestern Spain.  Following the pilgrimage, he wrote his most famous book, The Alchemist, with a small Brazilian publisher.  The novel has sold more than 65 million copies and has been translated into 71 different languages.  He has published 30 books.

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Diane Keaton

"You have to live life all the way.  Take risks.  Do things you can't imagine."

— Diane Keaton

American Actress

1946 - 

The hardest thing for most people to do is to live life to the fullest.  Usually we hold ourselves back for various reasons — most of them perceived, not real.  We are afraid of the unknown.  We are afraid of what might happen.  Fear dominates us.  We are not willing to risk everything.  We choose to play it safe.  Are you playing it safe in your art?  Or are you swinging for the fences?  Are you living the creative life?

Here is Diane Keaton discussing her memoir, Then Again.

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Annie Dillard

"Write as if you were dying.  At the same time, assume you write for an audience consisting solely of terminal patients.  That is, after all, the case.  What would you begin writing if you knew you would die soon?  What could you say to a dying person that would not enrage by its triviality?"

— Annie Dillard

American Writer

1945 -

These are not idle statements.  Death puts a very different perspective on what we do.  What would you write if you knew you were dying?  Do you have a few final stories to tell or poems to write?  What would you paint?  Would try to create something you have never created or would you paint the same thing you have always painted?  Or would you write at all?  Would let go of your creative impulse?  

What would you write if no one would criticize you?  What would you paint if you knew that no one would laugh?  What would you sing if you knew that people would clap?  

Death is about saying goodbye to what we know.  Death is about letting go of material objects that have been a part of our lives.  Death is about forgetting.  Death is a door through which we all must walk whether we are painters, writers, doctors or lawyers.

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William Sloan Coffin

"All of life is the exercise of risk."

— William Sloan Coffin

American Author, Clergy, Peace Activist

1924 - 2006

Have you ever let fear stand in the way your doing something that you desired to do?  Most of us have.  And yet if we stop and think about it: all life is a risk.  While eating carrots, you can choke and die.  Walking down the street at 6 a.m., you can be hit by a speeding car.  Taking a shower, you can slip and fall and hit your head.  You can visit a doctor and be told that you have cancer and have only six weeks to live.  All life is fraught with risk.  So why haven't you tried that new technique of painting?  Are you afraid you will fail?  Why haven't you sent your novel to a publisher?  Are you afraid of rejection?

Fear is powerful and often stops us from doing what we want to do?  We all have dreams and hopes, but sometimes we are not courageous enough to take that first step into the unknown.  That first step is often the most difficult.  In our minds, we think of all the things that could go wrong.  We should instead focus on our dreams and what we want to accomplish.  What steps are you going to take today to overcome your fears?  

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