A few days after he started helping Mr. Harun, Parman's life began to feel different. Not because he had a lot of money now or because his life had changed drastically, but because every day, he felt like he had a purpose.
In the past, after school, Parman would just sit at home playing on his phone or waste time without doing much. Now he had something to do that taught him many new things.
That afternoon, Parman was arranging some items on the corner stall's shelves when Mr. Harun arrived carrying a small notebook.
“Man, come here a second.”
Parman walked over.
“What is it, Sir?”
“Take a look at these notes.”
Parman accepted the little notebook.
“What are these, Sir?”
“Sales records from the past few days.”
Parman looked at the numbers written there.
“Why do you want me to look at them?”
“Because I want to know what you think.”
Parman was startled.
“What I think?”
“Yeah. You’re here every day. You must notice which items sell out quickly.”
Parman began studying the notes more seriously.
“If you ask me, cold drinks are more popular in the afternoon, Sir. Especially when it’s hot.”
Mr. Harun nodded.
“What else?”
“As for snacks, the spicy ones are bought more often by schoolkids.”
Mr. Harun smiled.
“So you do pay attention.”
Parman blushed.
“I just noticed from the customers who come in.”
“Exactly. That’s good. A lot of people work just to carry out their duties, but they don’t want to understand what they’re doing.”
Those words made Parman think again.
He was beginning to realize that working wasn’t just about showing up and getting paid. There were many little things he could learn if he was willing to pay attention.
That night, Parman told Darto about it.
They sat in front of the house, enjoying cold drinks.
“So now you’re learning how to run a business?” Darto asked.
“I guess so.”
“Pretty impressive. You used to be the laziest person ever when someone asked you to help out.”
Parman laughed.
“I didn’t get it back then.”
“Get what?”
“That experience can come from anywhere.”
Darto nodded slowly.
“Yeah, you’ve got a point.”
They fell silent for a moment, watching the street in front of the house grow quiet.
“Man.”
“Hmm?”
“What do you actually want to be?”
The question made Parman go quiet.
He used to think about it often, but he had never found a clear answer.
“I don’t know yet.”
“Still?”
“Yeah.”
Darto smiled.
“What matters is that you’re moving forward now.”
Parman looked up at the sky.
“Maybe I’ll know someday.”
Over the following days, Parman became more diligent. He started bringing a small notebook to the corner stall to write down anything he thought was important.
Which items sold out quickly.
When customers came in droves.
The way Mr. Harun served customers.
Even the way Mr. Harun talked to other people.
One afternoon, a customer came in and looked confused while choosing an item.
“Sir, do you have any food that isn’t too spicy?”
Mr. Harun was serving another customer.
Parman immediately stepped in to help.
“Yes, ma’am. This one’s pretty mild.”
“Really? Is it good?”
“It’s pretty good, ma’am. A lot of people buy it too.”
The customer eventually picked up the item.
After she left, Mr. Harun smiled.
“You’re getting better at helping customers.”
Parman chuckled.
“I just answered her question, Sir.”
“That’s what serving customers is. Sometimes people don’t just come in to buy something—they also want help choosing.”
Parman nodded.
That afternoon, he learned another new lesson.
A few weeks passed. Parman was becoming familiar to the corner stall’s customers. Schoolkids often stopped by and greeted him.
“Man, you got any new drinks?”
“Yeah.”
“Which one’s good?”
“Try this one.”
“Not bad.”
Little things like that made Parman happy.
However, not everyone was happy to see Parman changing.
One day, while Parman was carrying a cardboard box to the back of the corner stall, he ran into Beni, an old friend.
“Whoa, you work at a corner stall now?”
Parman turned around.
“Yeah.”
Beni gave a small laugh.
“Seriously? This is it?”
Parman stopped for a moment.
“What do you mean?”
“Nothing. I just thought you had big plans.”
Parman gave him a faint smile.
“This is part of the plan too.”
Beni raised an eyebrow.
“Carrying cardboard boxes?”
“Learning.”
“Learning what?”
“Learning all kinds of things.”
Beni just laughed and walked away.
In the past, words like that probably would have hurt Parman's feelings. But now, he was trying to look at things differently.
Not everyone had to understand what he was doing.
What mattered was that he knew why he was doing it.
That night, Parman opened his blue notebook again.
He wrote:
Sometimes people see the results, but they don’t see the process.
He paused for a moment, then added:
I’m still at the beginning of my journey.
The next day, something unusual happened.
Mr. Harun called Parman over earlier than usual.
“Man, help me out more today, okay?”
“Why, Sir?”
“A new supplier is coming. I want you to come along and learn.”
“Learn what?”
“How to choose good products and how to negotiate.”
Parman was immediately interested.
“Seriously, Sir?”
“Yeah. If you really want to learn, don’t just watch from the outside.”
Parman nodded eagerly.
That day became a new experience for him.
He saw how a shopkeeper chose products, calculated profits, and talked to other people to get the best price.
Everything looked simple, but it actually required a lot of thought.
On the way home, Parman felt like his mind was opening up more and more.
He was beginning to understand that success wasn’t something that came out of nowhere.
There was a long process that other people often couldn’t see.
And without realizing it, the small steps he took every day were bringing him closer to something he had been searching for all this time.