CAVU How High Can You Go?

In Inspiration, She's Enjoying the Journey by Dr. Jill Wade

Each year I try to choose one word to be my sounding call or battle cry for the year. This year I had decided “limitless” or “no limits” would be my motto for 2019. That is . . . until I heard this story about our beloved 41st president. Since then, my word is even more powerful. CAVU.

What a Life!

Yes, my heart was saddened at the death of a remarkable unselfish public servant, George H. W. Bush. But during the days of his wake, processional, and funeral I enjoyed hearing story after story about his positive character and willingness to help others. Numerous accounts were shared by those that knew him well; those who worked with him side by side, the security crew that protected him, and his family who so much loved him.

The story that touched me most? It was of the letter he wrote to his children. It told them how sorry he was for missing out on so much of their lives as he was away providing service to others. But at the same time he felt it was setting a good example of the kind of character he wanted them to develop in their own lives.

Excerpt From His Letter

In order to explain CAVU to Larry King, Bush read a part of his letter, which I have copied here: “CAVU was the kind of weather we Navy pilots wanted when we were to fly off our carrier in the Pacific. We had little navigational instrumentation, so we wanted to CAVU, ceiling and visibility unlimited, and because of the five of you whose hugs I can still feel, whose own lives made me so proud, I can confidently tell my guardian angel that my life is CAVU and it will be that way until I die. All because of you.”

As an Air Force pilot, he only knew how to live his life one way, and that was full out. And his children were his CAVU. They had made him proud. They inspired him and kept him flying high.

Will You CAVU Too?

Think about it. What if we all lived our lives with CAVU? Would we fly? What if we never second-guessed how high we could go? Never stopped to look down? Or even slow down? What if we pointed ourselves upward and kept on flying with gusto? How high could we go?

So many of us live our lives influenced by our fears. This can protect us on occasion, but most of the time it only drops our ceiling. It stunts what we think we can achieve in life. The ripple effect of living this way is costly, for it is not only affects you but everyone else’s life that you touch.

Give It Everything

What will your word be for 2019? How will you soar to your next level of living your best life? Go ahead and dream! After all, the ceiling is wide open and visibility is unlimited.

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