Ordinary Individual who was a Hero

Today is a new day for me because it is a new beginning without my dad. A determination to move forward with my studies, and to work again because this is what my dad wanted from me if he was living today.  

As, I move forward in my life today, I leave this speech on my blog I wrote for my dad call, “Ordinary Individual who was a Hero.”

“A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.” Christopher Reeve

This was my dad, Dan Rodriguez. He was a hero to all of us. Our Superman. He was also our best friend including me. I had the honor to be his daughter. My dad was a best friend to many of us. Many of us can relate to Dan being our best friend.

For 30 years of my life he taught me so much about life, school, writing, speaking, career, family, sports, to be hero, but also of the Lord. The Lord was close to his heart. He spent many of his days with the Lord on earth and in ministry to others. Dan was a man of prayer and reading the Bible. He spent his last days with his close friends and family praying. Dan had the honor to give blessings to us even though he was in pain. Dad was a giving man. Once dad told me that he never wanted his children or grandchildren to go through cancer. He was willing to die for us if we caught cancer.

Life- Dan was a teacher to all of us. Words can't express how much my dad taught us about life. There were many wisdom lessons that my dad taught us.

Writing- Dad was a writer. Many of you may not know but dad loved to write. My dad & I shared something common with each other, one of them being our talent to write. He wanted to write a book many years ago but did not pursue it. In his last days, we spent some time at night reading his own stories.

Speaking engagements- Dan was involved with Toastmaster when he worked for Mobil Oil. Dan had a way with his words as he spoke in public with confidence. It taken him a lot of years of practice to speak in public but he accomplished being excellent speaker.

Career- Dan obtained his bachelor degree at the age of 30 from Pam Am University. Dad worked for Mobil Oil for many years. My dad loved working Mobil Oil and took us to work sometimes. I remember one summer I got a temp. job working with Mobil Oil at the age of16. My dad and I spent our time together that summer going to work and having lunch together. Those were priceless moments for me working with my dad.

In 99, Dan was laid off from Mobil Oil. Dad went to EDS from 1999-2001. Laid off again because of the economy after 9-11. I watched my dad for 6 months look for a job. My dad was not giving up to find a job and to help his family. Then, my dad landed the Wal-Mart job as assistant manager in 2002. My dad worked a few years with Wal-Mart. He learned a lot about the retail business that made him stronger as person in life. Then, my dad went from Wal-Mart to Safety-Kleen in the Accounting position. My dad was the happiest person when he got Safety-Kleen job because he was back doing what he loved, which was being challenge with numbers. When he landed Safety-Kleen job that is when he got colon cancer and continued to work with Safety-Kleen after he beat cancer. Then, my father moved from Safety-Kleen to QuickSilver. I remember my dad telling me that he was happy to work in the oil industry again. He was happy to being his field again. He felt like he was working his first job at Mobil Oil. My dad loved what he was doing in his career because of the colleagues, the challenges, coming up with new projects, and friendships. Some people strive to be the best and make money but my dad was the opposite. He was man who had humility, who wanted to serve others and give of himself.

Family- Dan was a family man. You bet that my dad received # 1 father's day gifts each year. My dad would not miss any of our important events. As a family we traveled together each year on our family vacations. We ate as family, went to church, and watched lots of movies. Dan was not only a father to us but a father to many. Many of us will miss my father.

Sports- During his off time dad loved to watch sports in person or on TV. Dad told me once that he watched the cowboys when he was young boy and that is why he had a love for the Dallas Cowboys.

To be hero- My father helped us children in times of trouble. When we went through scary moments in our lives which our father was there with us to pray and read the Bible. I remembered as a child being scared when there was tornado in our area. My dad prayed with us to drive the storms away. He did the same thing when I was coming back from China this summer to pray for my safety when there was a typhoon in China and I came home with no issues.

A hero sometimes through weakness with his health...In 2006, I watched my dad as he dealt with colon cancer the first time. It was the hardest moment of his life of going through long weeks of chemo and radiation but my dad wanted to live and go back to work. Dad did eventually went back to work in 2007. Dad went through cancer 2^nd time in his lungs. Dad was a fighter as he went through hand full of surgeries in the past month but my dad continued to fight until he was called home.

Man of the Lord- My dad was man of the Lord. He prayed for you even though you did not know it. He would spend early mornings as he drove work to praying for many of you, at his desk, or in his quiet place. My dad was not flashy about his religion. My dad was not in ministry or pastor but he shared his faith when you were going through something in your life. My dad accepted you for who you were. My dad had unconditional love for you even if you did wrong to him. My dad taught us to be like Jesus and to share your faith no matter.

Dan will always be remembered in our hearts, and as my dad would tell me in his last days, “Look to Jesus”.

Written by Isleen Rodriguez
Picture taken by Nina Perales