Perseverance, grit, long-suffering, whatever you choose to call it—Fortitude is one of my favorite character traits, and a value that is inherent to every organization that is successfully executing its mission.  

In February of 1990, I suffered a serious spinal fracture—over 35 years ago. It was my first day of company command in the 82d Airborne Division. My oldest daughter was born just 7 days later, and sometime in between those two major events, our home was robbed. It was the most difficult period of my life to that point, but I would see harder times in the years to come. I remember the first orthopedic surgeon to visit my bedside the next day in the hospital. He was reassuring me that he would be pulling together all the documentation for my medical discharge from the Army. I wasn’t very gracious in letting him know that was unequivocally NOT my plan—and I asked to see the Chief of Orthopedic Surgery.  

You see, the Chief of Orthopedic Surgery was a good friend of mine. He was a fellow paratrooper with whom I had been deployed to Central America, and on more than one occasion, I had tossed him out of a perfectly good airplane. He came to consult with me, told me his treatment plan, and said to me very seriously, “Guy, if all you ever wanted to do was command in the 82d Airborne, then we are getting ready to find just how committed you are to it. This is not going to be easy, but if you do what I say, you will heal completely.” 

Six months later, I would deploy my company to the Middle East in support of Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm.   

There was a hit song nearly 75 years ago entitled, “I’ll Never Get Out of This World Alive.” Just like this song portends, we are all going to face our share of troubles, trials, and tribulations in this life. I have come to understand that we cannot stay in the place of what happens to us, but must seek the courage to envision what happens “next” and how we will persevere to survive the deepest cut. This is the moment when the full measure of your faith, family, and all the character traits that comprise your fidelity will inspire your path forward to win this fight.   

I previously narrated about our company value of Fidelity, and how its inherent attributes of integrity, honesty, and loyalty set the course for achieving the important goals we pursue for ourselves and those we love. Fortitude is that spiritual fuel that will get you to the end of that journey, and where you will find yourself stronger because of it. I know many reading this have prior military service and may recall how almost every training school would challenge your intellect, body, and mental resilience. Near the end of that training, at the point of near exhaustion, you would find yourself on some endless road march with a heavy pack on your back. No matter how long or how steep the climb, there is always one more step within us—one more meter, one more grain of effort to get to the destination. It is not the body that will fail you; it is your mind. Fortitude says, “Just one more step.” 

Fortitude is the trait that will drive all of us forward when we are wounded and broken; however, it is also a company value we at Revelations all share, and that means none should feel that they must walk that path alone.  

The paradox of our lives is that we would never know just how deep the ocean of our human spirit is, or the unlimited capacity for our ability to endure, until we have come face-to-face with great adversity. There is a dawn on the other side of darkness, you will outlast the storm—take one more step, and Discover Your Best!