Mission Ready

My Father’s Mission Statement: 
My mission is to live life; with contentment, friendly and “care-full” in interacting with others, poised and positive in all new situations, and aware and responsive to changes in my personal and professional environments.
My mental and physical fitness, confidence, attentiveness, and curiosity manifest harmony and growth in myself, my family, and my circle of friends and associates. 
My legacy is my family’s fully realized potential; and contributions I’ve made throughout my actions as an understanding father, loving husband, cherished friend, accomplished leader, respected teacher and student of life.

My father’s name is Steven Michael Soderquist.

He has lived these words for decades and as his son I know that he has done his personal best to uphold these truths.

I have witnessed as he interacted with someone who he necessarily didn’t like respectfully and leaves them with a smile. Every person my dad interacted with saw him as the words above. No he isn’t perfect ,but it is the imperfections that creates depth and beautiful contrast to the landscape of a personality. 

I use the term father instead of dad because to me it resembles fortitude in what a person represents to me as a parent. The word father demands resect when said; dad is cute. This man is a softy for sure so in person I respond to him as pops. 

“Become the individual that refuses to see duties undone. The person that lives like there is no tomorrow because there very well might not be.”
– David Goggins

When I was a small child my father worked a full time job, night school and then he would come home every night and clean up the toys in the living room that I had thrown about throughout the day. This man was working hard, learning more to earn more and coming home to set the house right because he is the ‘individual that refuses to see duties undone.’

The kind of man that today deep in his retirement chooses to spend his free time going on walks to pick up trash and bartends a local bar for fun and free.
The kind of man that demands excellence, but won’t crucify you if you don’t perform.
The kind of man that knows that a fight only leads to more harm and there is always another way.

A damn Jedi this one is. 

I witnessed this man plan and execute, plan and execute and always have a solution. I never saw him break, loose it or spin out. And that composure was established through multiple wives passing away in the process.
These women were happy to be married to my father and he is a man of service and would rather see someone happy than himself. 

His fortitude in moments of tragedy is the very thing I can say today that got me through my darkest personal times growing up. A sense of duty that a job is not done til its done. Life is a constant test and once you have learned the lesson taught from it you are always better off.

“Life doesn’t happen to you, it happens for you.”
– Jim Carrey

This man set a high bar. 
And I must do better. Not because it’s tradition or ego, but honor. 

I see making more of myself as a show of respect to the teachings bestowed onto me by both parents. Taking their lessons and example to new places and forms.

Evolving as their successor. 

This is not my job. My father only ever wanted me to find my own path and I will do it with the tools I have received and improved upon. 

Are you mission ready?

Have you taken a look at your life to see what you want to represent?

How do you want to be known?

The question that must be answered before all else is….
Who are you?

Knowing who you are will make establishing your own moral code easier. 

My father knows who he is and what he plans to do with it daily.