Once, there was a man who carried a dream like a heavy golden crown. He desired to be remembered for hundreds of centuries; he wanted the world to look upon him with eyes of admiration and envy. To him, an ordinary life was a fate worse than death. He wanted his existence to be a monument, standing tall above the faceless crowd.
He knew the path to greatness was paved with thorns. He met failure, mistakes, and crushing disappointment, but he wore them like armor. He believed that with enough determination, there was no wall he could not break.
He watched others begin their journeys. Some were luckier; some seemed to strive harder. He saw them reach their peaks and claim their glory, but he did not let bitterness stop him. He told himself that if he simply kept pushing, his time would come.
The harder he pushed, the more he fell. He changed his strategy; he shifted his mindset; he sacrificed his comfort, his time, and his peace. Yet, the summit remained far away. Every time he neared the end of a goal, he would stumble and find himself back at the base of the mountain, forced to start again.
He watched the world move on. He saw those who started long after him achieve success in an instant. He even saw those who seemed undeserving reach the heights he craved. "Soon," he would whisper to his tired soul. "No matter how long it takes, I will eventually get there."
As the years bled into one another, frustration began to gnaw at his heart. He looked back at the vast distance he had traveled and the immense effort he had spent. He was exhausted, his spirit frayed. He thought of stopping, but the fear of a wasted life kept his feet moving. If he gave up now, every sacrifice he had made would mean nothing.
Then, the moment finally arrived. He could see it—the greatness he had yearned for was shimmering just a step away. After a lifetime of struggle, it was finally within his reach.
But as he reached out to grab it, he slipped.
He fell harder than he ever had before. He lay on the cold ground, watching the golden light of his dream vanish into the mist. This time, he could not get up. His body was broken, and his time had run out.
Lying in the dirt, a terrible clarity came to him. He realized that persistence is not a magic spell. Simply because a man refuses to give up does not mean the world is obligated to reward him. There will always be those with more fortune, those with more luck, and those for whom the stars simply align. Pure determination, though noble, is never enough on its own.
He lay there, realizing he had spent his entire life chasing a shadow. In the end, he was exactly what he had feared most: an ordinary man. He was no different from the people he had looked down upon. He would die as they did, and like them, he would be forgotten by the centuries.