Isn't telling about something—using words, English or Japanese—already something of an invention? Isn't looking upon this world already something of an invention?"
"Uhh..."
"The world isn't just the way it is. It is how we understand it , no? Doesn't that make life a story?"

-The Life of Pi, Yann Martel 

People from all over the world have passed through this village, son,” said his father. “They come in search of new things, but when they leave they are basically the same people they were when they arrived. They climb the mountain to see the castle, and they wind up thinking that the past was better than what we have now. They have blond hair, or dark skin, but basically they’re the same as the people who live right here.”
“But I’d like to see the castles in the towns where they live,” the boy explained.
“Those people, when they see our land, say that they would like to live here forever,” his father continued.
“Well, I’d like to see their land, and see how they live,” said his son.
“The people who come here have a lot of money to spend, so they can afford to travel,” his father said. “Amongst us, the only ones who travel are the shepherds.”
“Well, then I’ll be a shepherd!”

 -The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho