Weekly Spark #250: Happy Father's Day!
Welcome to The Weekly Spark, my weekly+ newsletter featuring insights on mental and physical wellness, intentional living, and personal development. Since September 2020, I’ve published 250 reflections hoping to motivate myself and others to live more thoughtful, purpose-driven lives.
I know what you’re thinking, didn’t I already get a Weekly Spark this week? Well, this week is your lucky week… for the first time in Weekly Spark history, I’m delivering two newsletters for the very hefty price of one. As I reflect more, this will happen from time to time. However, this one is very special: honoring all of the great Fathers in our lives.
Every year, on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, I enjoy reflecting on the lessons and teachings of my parents. I hit the parental lottery and I’m well aware of that, grateful for them and all that they’ve done for me and my brothers, so it’s pretty easy to reflect and find greater meaning in their teachings and life lessons. Over the past few years, I’ve documented some of these concepts in multiple podcasts and newsletters. From my dad: do your talking on the scoreboard, the value of lifetime relationships, people are human beings first, focus on adding value to other people’s lives, take the high road, the faster it comes in the faster it goes out. Within this post, I’ve linked a few of the relevant Weekly Sparks below, as well as the two podcasts that we recorded together from summer of 2020 and summer of 2022, which summarize his major teachings.
Weekly Spark #248: It's Not Over Til It's Over!
Weekly Spark #177: Take The High Road
Weekly Spark #146: The Faster It Comes In, The Faster It Goes Out
This year, I’d like to reflect and extend a lesson that my dad taught me growing up playing baseball, that certainly applies in a variety of forums: swing the bat.
How do you hit a home run in baseball if you don’t swing the bat? How do you hit a 3-pointer in basketball if you don’t take the shot? How do you hit a winner in tennis if you don’t put the ball in play? How do you score a goal in soccer if you don’t take the shot? You need to take chances, take risks, and bet on yourself if you want to succeed in anything. In the case of “swinging the bat” in baseball, the point in case was when I would strike out looking (called 3rd strike without swinging the bat). He would tell me that if I don’t swing the bat and at least TRY to get a hit, it’s no different than standing in the batter’s box without a bat. Or if I were to double fault in tennis, it’s like the guy across the net is standing there with no racket. When you phrase it like that, there’s really no excuse for either of those events to happen. And I learned from that and have tried to apply it in my personal and professional endeavors in the future.
In life, how many times do we strike out looking? Watch an opportunity pass us by? Have a prime chance right in front of us, but we shy away? Afraid of failing. Afraid of taking that chance. Afraid of the embarrassment that comes with something not working out. Why? We literally could die tomorrow. In 2125, hardly anyone will remember who we are. These thoughts can be dark and even scary, but liberating at the same time. Even if you strike out swinging, so what? What’s worse than striking out swinging? Not swinging at all. Living a life of regret about a bat that you had in your hand but didn’t swing.
Step up. Take chances. Take risks. Conquer fears by doing things you never thought you could. Don’t let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.
In honor of my dad, I will continue swinging the bat at the chances that life presents me. I’ll never be mad at myself for “striking out” if it means that I put all my effort into something that appeared worth pursuing and it didn’t work out; the worst case outcome is that I learn something in the process, which is actually pretty good if you ask me. Here’s to more swings and more home runs…
What are some of the most important lessons that your dad taught you? What are meaningful themes that he lived by? Father’s Day is a great time to reflect on lessons that our dads taught us and the best way to honor him is to live them out and stay true to his teachings. To my dad, my brother, and all of the dads out there who have been good friends and inspiration to me, Happy Father’s Day!
Mental Diet
Podcast of the Week:
Candlelight Conversations Episode 5 - Life Lessons with Dad (June 2020)
Candlelight Conversations Episode 16 - Father's Day Special # 2 with Dad (July 2022)
Quote of the Week:
I hope you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing. If you are enjoying The Weekly Spark, please share with a friend, family member, or coworker who you think might benefit. If you have thoughts, comments, or feedback, please reply to this email and share them; I’d love to hear from you! Until next time… Take care of yourself and take care of each other. 🙏
Nathan
