Coelho asks, "Why is it so important to live our personal calling if we are only going to suffer more than other people?" This question/conversation comes up often with my friends who are pursuing, or want to pursue, their personal calling. Mainly, the question is not whether to pursue our personal calling, but how to financially support ourselves during the pursuit. How long would you be willing to work at [insert day job here] in order to support your filmmaking dreams, while your friends are buying homes and vacationing around the world? At what point do you go after the fallback career, or if you have one, to fall back into that fallback career?
Coehlo answers this question of "why": "Because, once we have overcome the defeats--and we always do--we are filled by a greater sense of euphoria and confidence. In the silence of our hearts, we know that we are proving ourselves worthy of the miracle of life." And my favorite quote: "Intense, unexpected suffering passes more quickly than suffering that is apparently bearable; the latter goes on for years and, without our noticing, eats away at our soul, until, one day, we are no longer able to free ourselves from the bitterness and it stays with us for the rest of our lives."
For my friends who have asked, "Why this pursuit?", and "For how long?", I think the answer can only be answered by the individual asking the question. But IMHO, I think that the commitment to the pursuit makes us more fulfilled. And isn't that what we're striving for?
