Mr. Tasha gave them one last look before going on his way.
Charlie still seemed slightly astonished, until Mary interrupted him with a question.
"Charlie, do you remember the first day you met Mr. Tasha?" Her voice was gentle, carrying memories of a distant past.
"Yes. Mr. Tasha was truly different back then, He was a friend to me before he was my manager." Charlie, the enthusiastic and sociable man, showed a somber expression that did not match his usual nature.
What was the difference between then and now?
There was no clear answer.
"Mary, Mr. Tasha has changed greatly. His smile vanished, his vivid emotions faded, and his burning enthusiasm slowly dimmed. Though introverted, he remained deeply devoted to his ambition." Charlie said in a soft voice.
"I understand you, Charlie. I saw him just as you described before he changed." Mary replied calmly.
"But Mary, there is one thing about him that never changed." Charlie continued.
"He is always striving to grow, He never stays in the same place forever, He constantly seeks change without fear or doubt."
Charlie fell silent for a moment, then looked into Mary's eyes.
"Mr. Tasha will return better than he was. This is just a phase where he sheds a dull cocoon so that patterned, silky wings may appear." Charlie's voice shifted between anticipation and excitement, He trusted Mr. Tasha deeply, having known him for many years.
…
Mr. Tasha walked down the street with calm, steady steps. His height stood out, and his strong build was unmistakable.
There was a distant look about him.
He had been thinking about many things lately, but Charlie and Mary had pulled him out of that spiral of analysis, if only for a moment.
'I'm truly happy for them. Yet my position with them, and my happiness for them, feels strange. How can I feel this way for others and not for myself?'
It was analysis, not self-blame.
Mr. Tasha saw no value in blaming himself.
He believed that self-reproach and making excuses were not the ways of men, He had lived by that principle throughout his youth and even now.
He understood this well, and so he never blamed himself, nor did he ever make excuses.
'Charlie is an old friend, yet he is also my employee. He refused to let our friendship continue, claiming that I was his manager and the one who hired him. Yet his actions always showed warmth and affection, He shared many moments with me as a manager, not as a friend. Mary is also an old acquaintance, She worked with me for years and shared many moments as well, especially because of her closeness to Charlie.'
Mr. Tasha smiled with a faint, childlike smile as he thought of them.
He realized that his emotions toward others surfaced more easily than they did toward himself.
What he felt and how he acted today were genuine.
This state was a challenge to himself.
His heart beat lightly, and within him a small flame ignited... ambition.
Whether he felt desire or not made little difference.
Mr. Tasha would do what was necessary for himself, with true sincerity.
This was the essence of ambition.
Even if you do not feel like it, act.
Do not stop acting.
Persistence always brings results.
…
Mr. Tasha did not head home.
Instead, he went to a park fifteen minutes away.
He was a man of few words, many thoughts, and many actions.
He loved solitude.
His mind never stopped working, nor did it scatter when he was alone.
Today, Mr. Tasha felt that going out and spending time with his thoughts would be beneficial.
His ambition was present, and so was his mind. He believed that everything had a solution, as long as a person used reason instead of conflicting emotions.
"My desire is simple and within reach, It only requires awareness, and nothing awakens awareness better than experience."
He thought about his next steps and began planning a different routine for this month.
He did not complicate things.
He chose to start with simple matters, followed by those more complex, requiring greater effort and time.
This was his way of honoring his ambition and desire.
He did not discourage himself from acting, he always chose action.
…
Mr. Tasha carried his steps, one after another, toward his home.
He exercised a little, then took a shower. He prepared a meal rich in proteins and carbohydrates, and ate calmly.
Afterward, he sat on the couch and read a few pages of a book for fifteen minutes.
Once he finished, he began writing down his next steps, then immediately decided to start with the first one.
He wanted to laugh, and he found nothing better than old animated cartoons like Tom and Jerry.
The idea was strange, breaking the expected frame of a suffocating routine.
'My action may seem trivial, but everything I do matters to me.'
He did not care how others might think of him.
After all, he was an ambitious man.
...