Once upon a time…

by Paulo Coelho on February 23, 2009

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{ 19 comments… read them below or add one }

Carolena Sabah February 27, 2009 at 1:43 am

They did, because at the time he was anti-war and the government.
He had a big following he would lecture in colleges and schools and such, and the government saw that a lot of people were agreeing with him and they put an end to him before they lost control of the population. Imagine, everybody, everybody against war and badness… extremists nightmare, so they killed him.

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Catherine M February 26, 2009 at 11:50 am

dear Carolena,
What’s the motive to assassinate him? Why the FBI would have killed him?

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Marie-Christine February 26, 2009 at 2:35 am

Keep in mind – it is only a “smoke screen”.

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Santosh Kalwar February 26, 2009 at 12:32 am

Dear Paulo and every one,

The title of this post is- Once upon a time…

My curiosity led me to think on the above title and I asked to myself-

“What is time?”

-I have been reading so much about time, by 9:00 AM or PM or whatever, but these are just physical entity, a device which is used to convince us or fool us about something called “time”.

-There could be many viewpoints but no body knows really about a simple question, “time”.
(I feel pity on myself with my degrees and everything, I do not know what is time…)

May God save this world where we live,
Are we all fooling each other and living by assumptions or opinions ?

I am thinking about this issue…
(Will surely require days, months or even years or never, before I will come up with examples on or about “time” )

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orly February 25, 2009 at 11:55 pm

i was a teen ager in the 60th and the beetles were our idols,,, every thing was imitated,,,, …. “there were our days my friends”,,,,, but today the 21 century,,,, all is so different… we r much more into spiritualism,,,, and so much more,,,,,
i loved those days,,, but i love the TODAY,
i love u all
Orly

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Carolena Sabah February 25, 2009 at 11:13 pm

Someone in an email exchange said this, I do not quote the person because I respect their privacy.

“I am also concerned with the world, it is a big mess and I do not think that anyone is capable of cleaning it up until all the countries are talking to one another and come to better understandings; then we, the people, can start to make a difference in every street, city and country. The biggest problem is fear, the USA is afraid, Iran is afraid, Russia and China are afraid every country is afraid of something, they are afraid of each other and terrorism. The only ones that are not afraid are the extremists, the murders, the rapists, drug dealers and the ignorant. We do live in a big lie at times, one could say that politics is a lie, another can say religion is a lie, others say it is the multinational companies that are a lie, or a combination of all these things make international relations a problem. Oil, religion and politics… ”

While I completely agree, I do not agree that we cannot make a difference. This is the problem, every one of us thinks that we cannot make a difference; I used to think so too.
But everything starts with us. Who carries out the dirty work of the extremists? We do!
Who goes to war, will these extremists put on a uniform and go fight for what they believe in? Hell no! They get people like us to do.
If we stopped for a minute and realized this, things could be a lot different. Every person can help in their own way, whatever way they can. I myself hate politics, never understood it, never will. I don’t think I would be able to talk to a politician I wouldn’t understand them, probably because they have complicated things so much that even they don’t know what in the world they are saying.
I have no doubt things will get better! Good ALWAYS prevails! As my daddy used to say!

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Carolena Sabah February 25, 2009 at 11:09 pm

Catherine, I do not understand your question…

what do you mean what’s the motive?

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Nanci February 25, 2009 at 9:42 pm

Both of my parents smoked when I was a little girl and I remember lecturing my mother about it. Then, when I was 14, I took up smoking and got the same lecture back. I remember being in high school and standing with other kids on the outskirts of the school grounds during class breaks and lunchtime smoking. I quit smoking when I was 17 and beginning college for the first time. I feel I’ve been fortunate in that I’ve never turned back to that habit.

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Catherine M February 25, 2009 at 9:18 pm

Dear carolena,

What’s the motive for John Lennon? Thanks.

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Carolena Sabah February 25, 2009 at 8:16 pm

When one is young and in the face of fame, money, success… one is easily drawn to it, or perhaps even fooled into it!

“Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we’re being run by maniacs for maniacal ends and I think I’m liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That’s what’s insane about it.” ­ John Lennon, before his murder by CIA mind-control subject Mark David Chapman

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Catherine M February 25, 2009 at 7:13 pm

Thanks to images we can be a little with them; both left. Thank you. I thought about them yesterday. Yes, I wanted to listen to them yesterday, and I did not..
“Microknee”: funny. I did not find the translation, but already a good name as sale’s tool… What’s that? And “buddies and pals”?
I’m listening to Abbey Road. Ell “Sun King” has just beginning lol. I really love that song. Beatles and me, it’s an old love story.
And yet, I found them sad, and pessimistic, why I don’t listen to them for long now. Since, they all have their own soul.

Also, I don’t like, when I see them making pub for cigarettes.
Her Majesty now: wonderful…
Ok: rubber soul. It seems I din’t do a thing today… yes I know, I’m a PCB addict. :

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Catherine February 25, 2009 at 5:06 pm

i’d like to know when the love of snuff/tobacco was known to actually be a harmful interest.

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Irina Black February 25, 2009 at 5:00 pm

To be alike.Similarities destroy opportunities.

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THELMA February 25, 2009 at 4:49 pm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXG83p2nkHw&feature=related
Hey Jude.
I do not think that Paulo Coelho would advertise cigarettes??
Well I was in Vienna and I was playing the piano for 8 hours a day in the ….cell/basement of Sacre Couer! I could not realize if it was Spring. Well I used to go to the Volks Garten with my …. sister!
LOVE,
Thelma

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Liina.L February 25, 2009 at 4:27 pm

Hmmm… I wonder, if the Beatles were my idols and I were younger, would I of started smoking aswell? Concidering what I have experienced and that I was quite determined to stay true to my bigger foundamental beliefs, I’d think that I would not of done that. Even if I liked them a lot…

I remember that when I was kid, around 8-9 years old, I lectured my parents how bad it was that they were smoking, and each time my mom and dad smoked in the kitchen, I would leave and close the door behind me. These are my memories.

I once even told my dad: “Dad, I wish You’d quit smoking. I wish You would make this gift for me for my birthday.” This was also when I was a youngster. And guess what happened? My dad actually tried to quit – he started using another ‘addiction’ to get over it – he started enjoying Mynthos, the mouth-refreshing pastilles for better breath and sore throat. Every time he sat in the car he would pop one of those pastilles in his mouth. :D And he actually was able to quit smoking and stay true to the commitment. And I admired him deeply for this.

It was actually odd how lightly he took it. Just like the moment when I saw Paulo on this video on the red carpet, when the photographers were yelling and flashing their cameras etc, etc. Paulo had such a calm and friendly face on. And he was free in communication, not tense at all. That’s how I remember how my dad was. He wasn’t tense, he took it lightly, even with a bit of humour.

Now that we have talked about it in later years, dad says that he still enjoys the smell, although somehow he’s not even tempted to smoke himself. And he even doesn’t want to. He takes it in a relaxed way. I admire it. And I still can’t believe he did such a thing for a little silly girl who said what she thought of it.

Sometimes I think – humour is a great medicine, if it’s not used wrongly.

And back to the choice of smoking… Still! I think – it’s everyone’s choice. :) My mom is still a smoker, and now my brother is also, although he quit and didn’t smoke for about 2 years. But recently he gave up and started smoking again.

Love,
Liina L.

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Alexandra February 25, 2009 at 2:10 pm

I love “The Beatles’,I mean their songs.Who dont know “The Yellow Submarine”?Or.”All you need is love”?
If they smoked.is their private bussines.I guess.
I am not a smoker,now.I think the public persons are giving examples to the young generations,so,if they have vices,better they hide them.Hmmm,hope I was not too harsh.

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Santosh Kalwar February 25, 2009 at 1:54 pm

“We are smoking Marlboro.. buddies and pals..”

Currently that is the brand I am smoking too…

-”Smoking is good for health only for those, who understand the definition of good.”

-”Life is like a cigarette starts with a lit and ends with the bliss.”

Beatles are really cool…
The message is clear, peace
Whatever it might mean dear
you are in need…

Good day !

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THELMA February 25, 2009 at 1:01 pm

If I was eighteen [Paulo Coelho does not believe in IFs!!] and my idols were the Beatles, for sure I was going to follow their paradigm and mimic them. But using my … ‘old’ mind nothing would make me follow them or anybody else.
LOVE,
Thelma

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sido66 February 25, 2009 at 12:16 pm

If everything is only smoked…

You have a value to be maintained…

And to preserve

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