Chapter 10 - The Old Farm House (Continued...)
Raul got inside the farmhouse with Sunil behind him. On the wooden rocking chair, closer to the far wall sat Mr.Wilson looking straight at him.
His mind was a surging perplexity.
Just when we think we are the master of our thoughts fate takes a new turn. Emotions come like hands on the wheel of a "car," taking us somewhere different to the place we had expected. The destination may be beautiful or insufferable; yet feeling afraid for it is all new and the heart beating all the harder.
"Raul...take a chair", he felt the hands of Sunil on his shoulder, nudging him gently to the wooden chair next to him.
Raul sunk in the wooden chair. He felt the chill of the cold wood through the denim blue jeans he wore. His eyes was still adjusting to the luminous of the solar lanterns that almost faded into the darkness few feet away from the lantern itself.
Sunil, left them at the hall and went into the kitchen. Raul felt that the anticipation was a nervous kind of energy. It tingled through him like electrical sparks on the way to the ground, gathering in his toes. He felt an unease engulf him.
"How was the drive?" asked Mr.Wilson.
"so..so..sir, it rained very hard, could barely see the road" replied Raul.
Sunil came from the kitchen with three cups of hot tea on a tray. "My family is not here, they are away at her(his wife) home for a visit" said Sunil
He placed the tray on the table. The smell of freshly ground cardamom filled the room with the steam from the cups.
"Oh! When have they left?" asked Mr.Wilson
"Been three days now. They should be back by Tuesday" replied Sunil
Raul sat in silence, listening to the sound of the rain. The downpour has stopped, now it dropped steady and soft. He tried to drown out his thoughts in the noise of the rain. He could barely hear the other conversations in the room now, all he could hear is the soft rhythm of the rain on the stone walkway outside like crackles from an old radio.
"Raul..take the tea" said Sunil.
"Ahh...Yes.." -Raul leaned forward and took the tea from the tray. The smell of cardamom hit him making him salivate. The hot black tea suited well for such a cold evening.
"Like you, I am an occasional visitor to this farm house" said Wilson with a grin.
"He is confused about this impromptu meeting" said Sunil with a chuckle pointing at Raul.
"There is nothing to be confused about" said Wilson,"We occasionally have such meetings here; Sunil never retired, he is very much a part of our past, present and the future.We cant afford to let go such fine men. They are what makes our family"
The CEO gave an impressive speech. That cleared a few things for Raul.
Was Sunil another operative for Wilson?- Life has taught him not to gallop ahead in conclusion, taking things for granted. Raul is a man of calculations, he reigned in his thoughts and listened.
The rain has almost stopped now and bright white light poured in through the window. Sunil stood up and switched off the solar lanterns. Wilson leaned forward to keep the cup back in the tray. It was then Raul noticed the Masonic Signet ring(Freemasons) Mr.Wilson worn on his finger. Raul didn't remember seeing that before..or did he! He was not sure. He sat back-
Raul was in the presence of some of the world's finest minds.
Many trips to Mr.Wilsons office, told Raul that Wilson is a man of an intriguing character. The collections of rarest books he kept on his shelf, the artifacts he placed in his office doesnt simply meant he is just a collector but truly a man of certain mysterious persona of something deeper.
"Raul...Sunil made the right choice when he recommended you to us a few years back. We want you to work closer to us." Mr.Wilson said leaning back on the chair and looking straight into his eyes. His voice was soft and soothing.
Raul responded to that with a puzzled look.
"It was one such evening, in this very same farmhouse, we discussed at lenghts about you... before we promoted you into your current postings." continued Wilson.
Raul noticed how Wilson was being very vague in the sentences. Was he trying to keep things away from Sunil. Was it just the way, such needed to be told or is it the CEO poetry?
"Within another month, we want you to work not just for Atlanta Inc. but also for our other group of companies and business interests. You will be posted in some core departments at the HQ itself. The assignments, you did saved us a lot of trouble and has kept us safe. You take responsiblity very serioulsy and you have a natural flair in this game Raul.."-Mr.Wilson paused.
Raul sat in silence... thinking. The human brain is similar to a supercomputer built on top of a clunker. The clunker is your primitive, reptilian, survival brain. The supercomputer is what does all your proper thinking, is logical, fair and kind. When you are confused, the bandwidth of your supercomputer gets used up, leaving the clunker to do all your thinking for you. You go from awesome to primal and basic in a heart-beat.
Mr.Wilson is the boss. He could have simply ordered Raul to be up for the next level. But, Wilson understood the minutiae of this "game" to its finer, bare details. With such a man of his credentials and life experience, nobody questioned him on his methods and intentions. First and the foremost, Mr.Wilson wanted, the commitment to come from the operative itself and Mr.Wilson wanted to hear it from the mouth of the operative themselves. The future assignments that awaited Raul was not just about making or breaking a deal, but the results of his actions, could take the share price of the company into newer heights, outwitting the competition or bring a PR nightmare for the group of companies or the worst, a total FUBAR for the reputation of the company globally.
Raul understood Mr.Wilson quite well. He is trying to gauge the 'special recruit' -it being him today. This is a job interview, in a farm house.
He felt the fear in his chest waiting to take over. Perhaps it only wants to protect him but there really isn't any danger.
Thought trundled through his brain like a through train, with no intention of stopping. As he watched it's tail lights winking in the distance, all trace of it leaving him, he wondered if maybe that is the one that would have made him his millions . The dynamic thinker in him was determined to board it, before he even knew, he was chasing it.
"It is a very serious question..Sir!" said Raul after a few moments pause.
Raul very well understood the gravity of his decision. As an operative, Raul has become more refined and efficient with every assignment. He loved the assignment. It kept his thoughts very much occupied to the extent of feeling numb. He was not sure what was in store for him; but he has navigated in the dark before, with only a star as his guiding light. The evening seemed like another Déjà vu for him.
Mr.Wilson is right. Raul has a natural flair in that role which matched very well with the lone wolf inside him. So far, he never failed in any of his assignments.
"Yes sir, I am in for the new assignments" said Raul with a smile, an anxiety sitting below it.
"Very well!!..then" said Wilson. " Meet me in the afternoon tomorrow at the office, that is settled then"
"Sir..."
"Raul, have you figured out who your successor would be in your current postings?" asked Sunil.
"Yeah....I think Haris Kuznetsov would be good" replied Raul.."He will be good for the R&D and Dunya Turgenev for the Farm...I meant the training division.sir"
"Hariz Kuznetsov and Dunya..." repeated Sunil.
For Raul, the day ended with a new turn in life. Being brave means being afraid, or at least it does for Raul. The two go hand in hand. First is the fear, then the determination not to be ruled by it. He always choose to face fear, to conquer it for his survival, for how else are we to cruise ahead in life? He was determined not be moulded by those who want him conveniently placated; he was determined not shy from the battlefields of life. Though his heart often beats fast and his fingers tingle from an excess of adrenaline, He is a warrior at heart. Faced with adversity, having an ability for calm and rational thought - he was blessed.
He looked outside; the rain seemed to have lost its frenzy. The ragged clouds gave way to the blue skies above.
His life was about to change lanes!!
His mind was a surging perplexity.
Just when we think we are the master of our thoughts fate takes a new turn. Emotions come like hands on the wheel of a "car," taking us somewhere different to the place we had expected. The destination may be beautiful or insufferable; yet feeling afraid for it is all new and the heart beating all the harder.
"Raul...take a chair", he felt the hands of Sunil on his shoulder, nudging him gently to the wooden chair next to him.
Raul sunk in the wooden chair. He felt the chill of the cold wood through the denim blue jeans he wore. His eyes was still adjusting to the luminous of the solar lanterns that almost faded into the darkness few feet away from the lantern itself.
Sunil, left them at the hall and went into the kitchen. Raul felt that the anticipation was a nervous kind of energy. It tingled through him like electrical sparks on the way to the ground, gathering in his toes. He felt an unease engulf him.
"How was the drive?" asked Mr.Wilson.
"so..so..sir, it rained very hard, could barely see the road" replied Raul.
Sunil came from the kitchen with three cups of hot tea on a tray. "My family is not here, they are away at her(his wife) home for a visit" said Sunil
He placed the tray on the table. The smell of freshly ground cardamom filled the room with the steam from the cups.
"Oh! When have they left?" asked Mr.Wilson
"Been three days now. They should be back by Tuesday" replied Sunil
Raul sat in silence, listening to the sound of the rain. The downpour has stopped, now it dropped steady and soft. He tried to drown out his thoughts in the noise of the rain. He could barely hear the other conversations in the room now, all he could hear is the soft rhythm of the rain on the stone walkway outside like crackles from an old radio.
"Raul..take the tea" said Sunil.
"Ahh...Yes.." -Raul leaned forward and took the tea from the tray. The smell of cardamom hit him making him salivate. The hot black tea suited well for such a cold evening.
"Like you, I am an occasional visitor to this farm house" said Wilson with a grin.
"He is confused about this impromptu meeting" said Sunil with a chuckle pointing at Raul.
"There is nothing to be confused about" said Wilson,"We occasionally have such meetings here; Sunil never retired, he is very much a part of our past, present and the future.We cant afford to let go such fine men. They are what makes our family"
The CEO gave an impressive speech. That cleared a few things for Raul.
Was Sunil another operative for Wilson?- Life has taught him not to gallop ahead in conclusion, taking things for granted. Raul is a man of calculations, he reigned in his thoughts and listened.
The rain has almost stopped now and bright white light poured in through the window. Sunil stood up and switched off the solar lanterns. Wilson leaned forward to keep the cup back in the tray. It was then Raul noticed the Masonic Signet ring(Freemasons) Mr.Wilson worn on his finger. Raul didn't remember seeing that before..or did he! He was not sure. He sat back-
Raul was in the presence of some of the world's finest minds.
Many trips to Mr.Wilsons office, told Raul that Wilson is a man of an intriguing character. The collections of rarest books he kept on his shelf, the artifacts he placed in his office doesnt simply meant he is just a collector but truly a man of certain mysterious persona of something deeper.
"Raul...Sunil made the right choice when he recommended you to us a few years back. We want you to work closer to us." Mr.Wilson said leaning back on the chair and looking straight into his eyes. His voice was soft and soothing.
Raul responded to that with a puzzled look.
"It was one such evening, in this very same farmhouse, we discussed at lenghts about you... before we promoted you into your current postings." continued Wilson.
Raul noticed how Wilson was being very vague in the sentences. Was he trying to keep things away from Sunil. Was it just the way, such needed to be told or is it the CEO poetry?
"Within another month, we want you to work not just for Atlanta Inc. but also for our other group of companies and business interests. You will be posted in some core departments at the HQ itself. The assignments, you did saved us a lot of trouble and has kept us safe. You take responsiblity very serioulsy and you have a natural flair in this game Raul.."-Mr.Wilson paused.
Raul sat in silence... thinking. The human brain is similar to a supercomputer built on top of a clunker. The clunker is your primitive, reptilian, survival brain. The supercomputer is what does all your proper thinking, is logical, fair and kind. When you are confused, the bandwidth of your supercomputer gets used up, leaving the clunker to do all your thinking for you. You go from awesome to primal and basic in a heart-beat.
Mr.Wilson is the boss. He could have simply ordered Raul to be up for the next level. But, Wilson understood the minutiae of this "game" to its finer, bare details. With such a man of his credentials and life experience, nobody questioned him on his methods and intentions. First and the foremost, Mr.Wilson wanted, the commitment to come from the operative itself and Mr.Wilson wanted to hear it from the mouth of the operative themselves. The future assignments that awaited Raul was not just about making or breaking a deal, but the results of his actions, could take the share price of the company into newer heights, outwitting the competition or bring a PR nightmare for the group of companies or the worst, a total FUBAR for the reputation of the company globally.
Raul understood Mr.Wilson quite well. He is trying to gauge the 'special recruit' -it being him today. This is a job interview, in a farm house.
He felt the fear in his chest waiting to take over. Perhaps it only wants to protect him but there really isn't any danger.
Thought trundled through his brain like a through train, with no intention of stopping. As he watched it's tail lights winking in the distance, all trace of it leaving him, he wondered if maybe that is the one that would have made him his millions . The dynamic thinker in him was determined to board it, before he even knew, he was chasing it.
"It is a very serious question..Sir!" said Raul after a few moments pause.
Raul very well understood the gravity of his decision. As an operative, Raul has become more refined and efficient with every assignment. He loved the assignment. It kept his thoughts very much occupied to the extent of feeling numb. He was not sure what was in store for him; but he has navigated in the dark before, with only a star as his guiding light. The evening seemed like another Déjà vu for him.
Mr.Wilson is right. Raul has a natural flair in that role which matched very well with the lone wolf inside him. So far, he never failed in any of his assignments.
"Yes sir, I am in for the new assignments" said Raul with a smile, an anxiety sitting below it.
"Very well!!..then" said Wilson. " Meet me in the afternoon tomorrow at the office, that is settled then"
"Sir..."
"Raul, have you figured out who your successor would be in your current postings?" asked Sunil.
"Yeah....I think Haris Kuznetsov would be good" replied Raul.."He will be good for the R&D and Dunya Turgenev for the Farm...I meant the training division.sir"
"Hariz Kuznetsov and Dunya..." repeated Sunil.
For Raul, the day ended with a new turn in life. Being brave means being afraid, or at least it does for Raul. The two go hand in hand. First is the fear, then the determination not to be ruled by it. He always choose to face fear, to conquer it for his survival, for how else are we to cruise ahead in life? He was determined not be moulded by those who want him conveniently placated; he was determined not shy from the battlefields of life. Though his heart often beats fast and his fingers tingle from an excess of adrenaline, He is a warrior at heart. Faced with adversity, having an ability for calm and rational thought - he was blessed.
He looked outside; the rain seemed to have lost its frenzy. The ragged clouds gave way to the blue skies above.
His life was about to change lanes!!
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