Following the Breadcrumbs

In Paulo Coelho’s beloved book “The Alchemist”, the young shepherd boy Santiago learns about the importance of following omens as he goes in search of his “treasure”. Along his journey, he meets characters who teach him to pay attention to the signs and symbols in the universe in order to be guided toward his destiny.

I thought about this recently while talking with a friend who said she is having these recurrent desires to move to Taiwan and she hoped I would talk her out of it. Even though she doesn’t know anyone there or have work there, I can’t bring myself to view it as a bad idea. Because it’s a stirring. And I have a lot of faith in stirrings, vague though they may be. Coelho calls them omens. I like to call these stirrings breadcrumbs. The image in my mind is that these breadcrumbs appear on our path and lead around corners and through doorways we mightn’t have thought of ourselves if we follow them. Maybe it hearkens to the imagery of Hansel and Gretel from the children’s fairytale who sprinkled breadcrumbs to find their way home from the forest. Just as real breadcrumbs tend to lead back to something delicious, metaphorical breadcrumbs often do too.

Breadcrumbs act like sparks in consciousness that when followed, often lead to unexpected places. Unlike bright shiny objects that distract us (squirrel!), breadcrumbs are subtle and sweet and gently persist as ideas floating in consciousness until we either push them away or pay attention and follow them.

I’ve seen breadcrumbs in my own experience and those of friends and clients appear in many ways, which might include a desire to learn a language, play an instrument, visit a city, connect with a stranger, open a food truck. Because I come across so much stuckness in my work, I can’t help but see the breadcrumbs that appear as fireflies flickering in the dark to get our attention to move toward them.  

There was a great profile of Isabella Rossellini in the New York Times last month celebrating the way she is living her life, aging and doing what interests her (sheep farming it turns out). “I didn’t have a master plan,” she says. “I just followed my curiosity diligently. . . Being joyful and following things that are joyful, following what is amusing you – it’s a very simple ingredient, and I’m doing it.” And she’s rocking it I’d say. At 71, the actress/director/model’s Instagram page is bursting with joie de vivre and a clear comfort in her own (unretouched) skin.  

The principal theme in Coelho’s “Alchemist” is that the universe communicates with individuals though signs, and by being attuned to these signs, one can navigate their path in life toward fulfillment and actualization. Following them requires trust in oneself, the universe, and the belief that everything is in some way interconnected.

Looking for them is fun too. Unlike a dopamine hit which quickly drops and warrants another dopamine hit, breadcrumbs linger like fireflies to get our attention and once one is followed, it invariably leads to the next one if we’re paying enough attention to see it.