Paulo Coelho - Manuscript Found in Accra

“You have studied in order to be able to speak these beautiful words, but we have to work to support our families.”

And he answered:

Beautiful words are spoken by poets. And one day, someone will write:

I fell asleep and dreamed that life was only Happiness .

I woke and discovered that life was Duty .

I did my Duty and discovered that life was Happiness .

Work is the manifestation of Love that binds people together. Through it, we discover that we are incapable of living without other people, and that they need us just as much.

There are two types of work.

The first is the work we do because we have to in order to earn our daily bread. In that case, people are merely selling their time, not realizing that they can never buy it back.

They spend their entire existence dreaming of the day when they can finally rest. When that day comes, they will be too old to enjoy everything life has to offer. Such people never take responsibility for their actions. They say: “I have no choice.”

However, there is another type of work, which people also do in order to earn their daily bread, but in which they try to fill each minute with dedication and love for others.

This second type of work we call the Offering. For example, two people might be cooking the same meal and using exactly the same ingredients, but one is pouring Love into what he does and the other is merely trying to fill his belly. The result will be completely different, even though Love is not something that can be seen or weighed.

The person making the Offering is always rewarded. The more he shares out his affection, the more his affection grows.

When the Divine Energy set the Universe in motion, all the planets and stars, all the seas and forests, all the valleys and mountains were given the chance to take part in the Creation. And the same thing happened with mankind.

Some said: “No, we don’t want to. We won’t be able to right wrongs or punish injustice.”

Others said: “With the sweat of my brow I will water the fields, and that will be my way of praising the Creator.”

Then the devil came and whispered in his honeyed tones: “You will have to carry that rock up to the top of the hill, and, when you get there, it will roll back down again to the bottom.”

And all those who believed in the devil said: “The only meaning in life is to repeat the same task over and over.”

And those who did not believe in the devil answered: “Then I will love the rock that I have to carry to the top of the mountain. That way, each minute by its side will be a minute spent closer to the one I love.”

The Offering is a wordless prayer. And like all prayers, it requires discipline—not the discipline of slavery, but of free choice.

There is no point in saying: “Fate was unfair to me. While others are following their dreams, here I am just doing my job and earning my living.”

Fate is never unfair to anyone. We are all free to love or hate what we do.

When we love, we find the same joy in our daily activity as do those who one day set off in search of their dreams.

No one can know the importance or greatness of what they do. Therein lies the mystery and the beauty of the Offering: it is the mission that was entrusted to us, and we, in turn, need to trust it.

The laborer can plant, but he can’t say to the sun: “Shine more brightly this morning.” He can’t say to the clouds: “Make it rain this evening.” He has to do what is necessary: plow the field, sow the seeds, and learn the gift of patience through contemplation.

He will experience moments of despair when he sees his harvest ruined and feels that all his work was in vain. The person who has set off in search of his dreams will also have moments when he regrets his decision, and then all he wants is to go back and find a job that will pay him enough to survive.

The following day, though, the heart of every worker or every adventurer will once again be filled with euphoria and confidence. Both will see the fruits of the Offering and will be glad.

Because both are singing the same song: the song of joy in the task that was entrusted to them.

The poet would die of hunger if there were no shepherds. The shepherd would die of sadness if he could not sing the words of the poet.

Through the Offering you are allowing others to love you. And you are teaching others to love through what you offer them.

And the same man who had asked about work asked another question:

“Why are some people luckier than others?”

And he answered:

Success does not come from having one’s work recognized by others. It is the fruit of a seed that you lovingly planted.

When harvest time arrives, you can say to yourself: “I succeeded.”

You succeeded in gaining respect for your work because you did not work only to survive, but to demonstrate your love for others.

You managed to finish what you began even though you did not foresee all the traps along the way. And when your enthusiasm waned because of the difficulties you encountered, you reached for discipline. And when discipline seemed about to disappear because you were tired, you used your moments of repose to think about what steps you needed to take in the future.

You were not paralyzed by the defeats that are inevitable in the lives of those who take risks. You didn’t sit agonizing over what you lost when you had an idea that didn’t work.

You didn’t stop when you experienced moments of glory, because you had not yet reached your goal.

And when you realized that you would have to ask for help, you did not feel humiliated. And when you learned that someone needed help, you showed them all that you had learned without fearing that you might be revealing secrets or being used by others.

To he who knocks, the door will open.

He who asks will receive.

He who consoles knows that he will be consoled.

Even if none of these things happens when you are expecting it to, sooner or later you will see the fruits of the thing you shared with such generosity.

Success comes to those who do not waste time comparing what they are doing with what others are doing; it enters the house of the person who says “I will do my best” every day.

People who seek only success rarely find it, because success is not an end, but a consequence.

Obsession doesn’t help at all; it only confuses us as to which path to follow and ends up taking away the pleasure of living.

Not everyone who owns a pile of gold the size of that hill to the south of our city is rich. The truly rich person is the one who is in contact with the energy of Love every second of his existence.

You must always have a goal in mind, but, as you go along, it costs nothing to stop now and then to enjoy the view around you. As you advance, step by step, you can see a little farther into the distance and take the opportunity to discover things you hadn’t even noticed before.

At such moments, it is important to ask yourself: “Are my values still intact? Am I trying to please others and do what they expect of me, or am I really convinced that my work is a manifestation of my soul and my enthusiasm? Do I want success at any price or do I want to be a successful person because I manage to fill my days with Love?”