[December 5, 2022] General Satterfield’s recent article asking “how do I become a man?” sparked my thinking about my dad. When talking to others, I always described my dad as a good man. And then it hit me, he was a man because he was a good man.
He was a fabulous dad but when I speak of him I say he was a “good man.” Perhaps the goodness in him that made him a man is what this article is about.
His family (familia) was his source of pride and joy. When he wasn’t working, he spent his time with my mom, my brother, and me. What we did, we did as a family unit; whether it be visiting relatives, going to the park or beach, to Catholic mass, or on a road trip with him. We were happy to have him as the head of our family.
A very hard, conscientious worker. My dad never held a high position at work but you would never know it. He did the best job he could at whatever he did. He was always on time, never skipped work or took sick days, and the other men at work held him in high regard. He took the role of family provider very seriously.
He kept life simple. Whenever I asked him what he wanted for his birthday or Christmas, he would always say, “I have everything I want.” Material things mattered little to him.
Every meal was eaten at the kitchen table with all our family. No one would start eating until everyone was seated. I could remember when he held as many as three jobs at one time; we would wait to eat dinner until he returned home even if he had only a few minutes between jobs.
He was extremely respectful of others, especially his parents. I learned to respect my elders, not through lectures, but through my dad’s deeds.
He was very affectionate. Hugs and kisses, and “I love you’s” were commonplace, even with the males in our family.
My dad was a simple man, not simple-minded. He didn’t cloud his life with alcohol or running around with the guys, but he did love nature and could sit outdoors for hours just enjoying the beauty around him.
He was physically strong. But I think his true strength was knowing when not to use it. He was very gentle and kind. You don’t have to be a bully to be strong.
Dad was a humble man. He was not caught up with himself and he was unaware of the positive effect he had on others.
He was a role model. While not tall in stature, he was nonetheless looked up to. Especially young men and boys respected his advice, which he only gave when asked.
Dad always told the truth. At times, this might have been his Achilles heel. He always believed the best in everyone.
He was a faithful husband and demanded respect for my mom. I believe this was largely due to his deep faith in God and His Commandments.
As I’ve said many many times before, my dad was a good man!
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Be good man. That is the sage advice of the ancients.
Yes, very good article.
ArmyWife brings us a view of a “good man” based on the quality traits of her dad. I want to thank her for her insights into and details of what a good man is like. As we can see from her writing, her dad was responsible in all things, he loved his family, he was an excellent worker, and took proper care of himself and his family. These are the hallmarks of a “good man” and always will be. Thank you!
Thank you all for your positive feedback.
Thank you General Satterfield for putting my brain cells to work.
Always tell the truth and let the consequences fall as they may. This is what a good man is like. So, well done, Army Wife and we do appreciate you sharing your dad’s traits as a truly good man.
“Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one.” – Marcus Aurelius
Oops, forgot this one ….. and this quote too, one of my favorites, “A man who has made no enemies is probably not a very good man.” – Antonin Scalia
A good dad is a HERO to his wife and kids.
All these characteristics you can find in the early articles of Gen. Satterfield. Just search on “characteristics” and there are over a hundred. What today’s article does is reinforce what we’ve seen before and an excellent example of a man being a good man. Weak men cause too many problems and there are too many weak men out there. Our Western society encourages men to be weak and that is now and will be more destructive than anything we can do ever in our society. Only good men make things go well.
Yes. And Army Wife has given us an excellent example. Her dad was not just a father, but a good man. 😊
Thumbs up on your article. I like it.
I think we all give it a ‘thumbs up’. Gen. Satterfield rarely gives guest writers a forum much any more since he changed the focus of this website from senior leadership to all forms of leadership, esp. looking at the individual. Many of the older guest writers were just not up to the task. Thank you Army Wife for your input, well done!!
Thank you Army Wife for your input on what is a good man. It surely is not easy to describe but I believe you’ve done a wonderful job telling us about your father and HOW he was a good man.
To be a man is to be a good man. Great comment, ArmyWife and thank you for this article on Gen.Satterfield’s leadership blog. I come here each day to read his advice. I see you had an earlier article, keep up the work you are doing for us.
— and good men are religious men, consistently and that is the way of the world, is now and always has been. ✔
YES!!
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Yep, religious, yep always. Otherwise you cannot be a good man in the true sense of it.
Good article, ArmyWife! As we should all think of our ‘dads.’