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Today, I welcome Jason Gardner back  on the Dad Strong podcast. I am grateful to have this conversation as I believe Jason is a prime example to the rest of us what it means to be a strong father. But like ours, it has not been a journey without significant challenges and hard lessons.

Jason is a former NAVY SEAL and in his 30 years experience, including 9 tours, Jason was Team 5 Commander Master Chief and was awarded a silver star, two bronze stars and a purple heart. He works with Previous guest JP Dinnell with Jocko Willink at Echelon front.

Jason and I have a great conversation about, among other things, living away from areas with high population densities. He tells us how he and his wife Iris had a vision of raising their kids surrounded by nature, and worked their way from living in a small flat in the city to owning a farm in the wilderness, where their children can have the experiences they envisioned nature and the benefits that go with that.

We discuss how we can become more open-minded and take a step back, become more self-aware and acknowledge that we have not experienced the way others have and are treated.

We look at developing the patience to have the difficult conversations and touch on how it is better as fathers not to go looking for trouble, or deliberately go to places you know are dangerous. We apply this to how we as parents tend to allow negativity into our life when we could choose not to.

Jason also shares how he has learned not to add fuel to the fire or more pain to our lives by letting anger control him.

As Rudy Reyes said on the last podcast life is a battlefield but also a garden and we need to learn to harness the best in us to both protect, fight as well as love and nurture.