Ambition

When I was quite young some people would ask me what was my ambition. I never had a ready answer. A friend once remarked that a person without ambition is like an animal. I was a bit embarrassed though I did not see myself that way. I was so taken by the myriad beautiful things that life had to offer that I had no time for ambition. The priority was movies, sports, reading, picnics, friends and so on.

When I grew up I understood that ambition, so far as I was concerned, was quite boring. For me life did not mean becoming an engineer or a doctor, work my way up in a company and some day occupy a higher position. It did not mean seeking power and have control over people. It did not mean starting a business and earn a lot of money. My ambition, if it could be called so, was to know how things work, to know the principle behind the manifestation, to revel in the abiding beauty of our planet, to enjoy the arts, to ponder the human existence, to decipher the science of things.

Having said that, it takes all sorts to make this world and I am happy for it. If everyone gives up ambition, there will be no progress, no advances in any field, no material achievements. But it does not happen that way. So I can happily go on in my own way, knowing that the world will take care of itself.