Always Forward?

My dad has read a bunch of books about Patton. I haven't read a single book about Patton, but I know that he had an affinity for the phrase Always Forward. I only know that because my dad has that on his license plate. Always Forward. It's easy to know which way is forward in war, at least the kind of wars that Patton fought. The difference between the good guy and the bad guy were clear. Victory was easy to differentiate from defeat. Patton always had a pretty good idea of whether he was progressing toward his objective or being defeated. 

The clarity of Always Forward is comforting. There's no waffling or doubt in a phrase like that. If you're not sure what to do, just keep moving forward. A step forward represents progress. It's a small victory that you can build on to find the courage and strength to take that next step. 

Always Forward also implies a yearning for something beyond where you are now. The allure of the now dims in the splendor of what may be. That next thing holds promises of praise and glory. You have to keep working towards that thing off in the distance because that's where you'll find the action. Don't stop to appreciate what you have now. Keep your eyes on that prize off in the distance.

I had a thing for taking walks at night when I was in high school. I don't remember thinking much about what was going on in my life at the moment. I was always thinking about what may be. Glory in football, the promise of college, I guess I was just looking to get beyond where I was at the moment. There was a dissatisfaction with where I was and those fantasies were my way of escaping. Those dreams never came to reality. I did a bit of the work to make some of those things a reality, but I was never fully committed to any one vision to pursue it with a focused intensity. Focused intensity is not really my thing. 

I'm not really an Always Forward kind of guy, but for whatever reason I've always had this sense that I should be doing more. Some part of me feels that there are other big things out there that I should be working on. But other parts of me just focus on what needs to get done. Which way is Forward isn't Always clear, but there are always clearly important things that need to get done. Those things are important because they matter to the people in my world. They have a huge impact on the people who are in my world. The whole big wide world may not take much notice, but the people I see everyday see the results of my effort.

My dad always yearned for more. That next big assignment, that next big job. He was always so focused on moving forward that he never really stopped and realized the value of what he already had. He's been chasing that next opportunity that will fix everything for his entire life. He still talks about that next job that will allow him to be all that he can be. He's in his sixties and he still feels like he doesn't have that missing piece in his life. He's always looked out there, trying to stay moving, Always Forward, but what he was missing was right there all along.

I don't want to repeat that life. I want to see what I have, appreciate what I have, and do all that I can to make my world that best that it can possibly be.