Connecting the dots
Let’s rewind a bit
So, who’s Mr Soderman? I’m in a reflective mood today, so this is a longer story. If you feel like it, grab a coffee and come along.
To start off, I am a curious soul, a lifelong learner, and a programmer from Sweden. Life’s challenges have taught me to always stay present and appreciate the small, fleeting moments, because sometimes that’s all we have.
I needed that perspective, because living with social anxiety, autistic traits, and as a Highly Sensitive Person meant that studying, working, and what people usually call a “normal” life unfolded differently for me and It made things tricky and very isolating at times, but I am forever grateful for the good people who supported me and made all the difference.
Stepping out of the bubble
A big turning point for me was going to Borgå, Finland, to train as an animal caretaker. It was way harder than I expected, but it got me out of my shell. Through all of that, my phone had been my lifeline, keeping me connected to my only friend, who was living on the other side of the world.
Not long after, I made a bold move and traveled to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. I did not want to slip back into my old life, and I had a very important reason to go: I wanted to meet that dear best friend in person. We had talked for ages about meeting up sometime in our lives, but with the massive distance between us, it was mostly just something we said, never really thinking it would happen. But when the chance came, I knew I needed to take the leap.
The currency of Empathy
Once I was there I discovered a much simpler, richer way of life unlike anything I’d known before. People lived with less rush and more connection to one another
I saw people of different backgrounds show respect and compassion for one another. They even helped each other to build each other’s places of faith instead of starting arguments about who is right. What stayed with me most was seeing people give away things they still liked and used, not just things they didn’t need anymore. Seeing people give what little they had made me understand what truly matters.
That experience changed how I see community. Sharing isn’t only about giving away what we do not need, but also about giving what we still value. And also that help often happens (and needs to happen) without being planned or requested, but because others notice a need and step in.
True connection means not remaining a silent bystander when support is needed. Taking action when systems are too slow or people are left at risk. My whole experience taught me very clearly that true community is built on shared responsibility.
Finding my way home
Then COVID happened… and while it forced the rest of the world into isolation, it felt completely surreal for me because it was the exact moment I was finally starting to step out, break my own isolation, and turn my life around. That whole period was my ultimate turning point. It made me stop and ask myself the real question: how can I build a life that actually fits my core passions and the way my mind works?
To answer that, I thought hard and long about what brings me happiness and what gives my life meaning:
🐺 Animals have always meant a lot to me. They are my world. There are no words to explain how important they are to me.
🎵 Music has been with me for as long as I can remember. I’ve played piano since I was 8, and I use it to express things I can’t put into words.
✨I love tinkering with stuff, creating and experimenting, turning ideas into something real and expressing myself in different ways.
🥗 Cooking and trying out baking recipes, something I’ve enjoyed since I was a kid.
🌱 To ground myself, I tend to spend time in nature, exercise, play games, watch films, read, and learn new things.
💻 And then we have programming…
A vast portal of possibilities
Ever since I was a kid, I have been fascinated by computers. My mind loves to create, feel, and imagine, but it also loves to think, analyze, and solve problems.
I actually spent years writing code on paper before I could even afford a computer, testing my code only now and then at a friend’s house. That forced me to think carefully about everything I did. I had to go through every line of code in my head when I did not have a computer. I would compare it to what it is like for a musician to be notating music on paper and in their head, without being able to try it on an actual instrument straight away. I still find it to be a very important way to program. It is easy to be sloppy and just copy and paste away a solution when you sit at your computer.
What I loved about programming then, and still love about it, is that it feels limitless. One thing that *has* changed, is that back then, a simple manual could explain an entire system, but today’s technology is wrapped in layers of complexity. That said, you don’t need to know everything to build useful software; you just need curiosity and a willingness to learn.
Over time, I’ve noticed how programming connects with my other interests in unexpected ways, giving them a deeper meaning that goes beyond mere entertainment and feeds right into my real passions. At the same time, I started to see how deeply technology shapes the world around us.
In society, we often confuse our tools, such as wealth, technology, social media, with our goals, such as happiness, connection, progress. Human intent is the actual music; the systems we build are just the instruments.
Programming is about much more than just writing code; it’s about understanding how systems fit into a bigger picture. That’s why I started this blog, to explore both the opportunities and the risks.
Why tech and heart go together
When you think about it, all that computers actually do is simulate things. We model our physical world to solve complex real-life problems, using techniques such as bioinformatics where computer science meets biology to understand the puzzles of life itself. We also model imaginary worlds just for fun, like in games. In a way, simulations are at the heart of everything when it comes to computers, and while no simulation model is ever 100% accurate, they are incredibly useful tools.
But technology is a double-edged sword with a dark side, and it’s all too easy to abuse tools like AI just to “win” rather than using them to help everyone grow. It all boils down to the fact that we have a responsibility to one another. Real progress is like a healthy relationship, a two-way street where what affects one part impacts the whole.
People are built to cope and adapt, not to progress. We learn to survive the conditions we’re given, even when those conditions limit us. Progress begins when we stop adapting to the cage and start looking for the door.
Tiny details guide the overall picture, and vice versa. True growth means sharing responsibility so that everyone has the opportunity to flourish, not just a privileged few.
The same principle applies to how we solve problems. If we rush to find answers without understanding how the details connect to the bigger picture, we easily create brand-new problems instead of fixing old ones. Ultimately, both life and programming are about becoming better at *finding* and *understanding* what the true problems are deeply, before even trying to solve them.
Connecting the dots
I see the world like a massive puzzle: if we focus only on our own tiny piece and ignore how it fits with everything else, we miss the full picture. Living with disabilities has shown me firsthand why inclusion matters so much. That is why social justice, standing up against bullying, and caring for animals are values I try to live by every day. Our values shape what we do, both toward ourselves and toward each other.
We cannot build a stable society by focusing on success first and hoping everything else will follow as a side-effect, because true success only happens when people feel hope, stay healthier, and are supported and included. For me, living those values shows up as planting trees, volunteering for what I find is important, and surrounding myself with people who share that compassion. At the end of the day, I just want to leave things a little better than I found them. Every small effort matters.
In this modern world, code is the invisible engine running almost everything around us, shaping the reality you live in every day. Programming quietly powers everything in our world. Your world…
…And what is your world? That is one of the most important questions that you can ask yourself in your life. Because it’s all too easy to only care about a tiny circle you grew up in. But your world is only as big as what you allow yourself to care about. Care wider. Let in the unfamiliar.
Alright, enough of that – let’s get to the fun! 🚀
☕ Goodbye Hello!