Posted in art, History, Quotes, Tarot, writing

Self-confidence

Posted on by D. D. Syrdal

Our weekly card. Sometimes I pick one out that seems to be vying for my attention more strongly than the rest, but this week I went through the whole deck and couldn’t decide on one (although there were several contenders) so I shuffled and cut the deck and let the Cosmos decide what we needed this week.

So, who’s feeling all Napoleon-like? Anyone? Raise your hand.

Yeah, me neither.

As usual, this is from the Art of Life Tarot by Charlene Livingstone. The painting detail is from “Napoleon Crossing the Alps” by Jacques-Louis David. Turns out there are five versions of it, and this particular one is called the Charlottenburg. Since it was painted around 1800, I think it’s safe to assume the artist had some knowledge of what Napoleon looked like. So there he is, looking at us through the ages. Of course the painting is highly idealized, David wasn’t actually there during the crossing of the Alps to pose his subject.

Here’s the full version, found on Wikipedia:

(click to embiggen, then click again for the really big one)

So what can we make of this? The King of Wands in the Tarot is Fire of Fire (each suit corresponds to an element, and each court card – King, Queen, Knight, Page – further corresponds as Fire, Water, Air, Earth). Explosive energy, this guy. Boundless enthusiasm. He’s the one who dreams up the battle plans and organizes everything. Sounds like ol’ Nappy to me. He’s a hard-charger, and it’s never occurred to him not to try, or that it couldn’t be done. Does it always work out? Course not. Ask Napoleon about his trip to Russia. Maybe that cold put out the fire. He sure gave it the ol’ college try, though, didn’t he?

But nothing’s going to happen at all if we don’t have the confidence in ourselves to try.

And with that, I’m off to work on a story that I will hopefully be able to submit somewhere very soon. What are your battle plans for the week?

Author:

Writer of vampire stories and science fiction. First novel, "Revenants Abroad", available now at Amazon. If you like a vampire you can go out drinking with and still respect yourself in the morning, I think you'd like Andrej.

11 thoughts on “Self-confidence”

  1. look at the horse. It’s rearing up – strong, up to the job, but not really crazy about what they’re about to do. He’s not bucking Nappy off, though – animals, minions, will sense the master’s confidence and follow his lead. That’s important, I think : step forward boldly – not necessarily fearlessly, b/c the bravest people are the ones who are smart enough to feel fear, but strong enough not to succumb to it – and you’ll often find the support that you need.

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  2. Yeah, the horse is kind of wild-eyed, like he’s saying, “The hell you talkin’ about? I’m not going up there!” I’d say he’s doing his damnedest to dump the rider 😉 Problem is, the rider knows how to hang on. Sometimes that’s the best we can do, is to hang for the ride.

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  3. Hi DD perfect quote to stat off the week, “But nothing’s going to happen at all if we don’t have the confidence in ourselves to try.” It’s like a nice kick in the buns for all of us….and I can say I need it each day 😀 seriously. This week is my routine schedule just more doctor appointments added to it. Each week is totally busy and Thursdays is the only time I really make time for myself whether it is the whole day or a few hours just to escape from life. Phone, computer, tv, and everything is off. Just me, my radio, and my bed. Wishing you a great week!

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    1. Hi Lora,

      Sorry to hear about all the dr. appointments, hope it’s nothing serious. Good for you for taking time for yourself. I’ve had to get tough with myself about not spending so much time online. Twitter is turning into the big time suck I always feared it would be, but it’s so fun and I’ve met so many wonderful people. 🙂 Wishing you a great week too!

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      2. HI DD and thanks I think I be okay. I have tons of blood work and no one can find what is wrong not even the ER each month when I go. I am having stomach pain for almost a year and pretty much everyone said that I am healthy beside being fat ofcourse, lol. Enough about me…so twitter got you hook um, lol. How do you do it? Like when writing on twitter you have to keep it short and pretty much be precise.

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      3. That’s kind of scary, Lora. I hope they get it figured out soon. I’m sure they’ve tested for all the obvious stuff like ulcers and food allergies? I sure hope you feel better soon.

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  4. You got me so interested in this again. Confidence, yeah, wish we could buy it somewhere in a big bottle to swig every morning like Geritol. Remember that? Love when you post a card. Great about your story. Keep writing.

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  5. Thanks DD. They tested for infections, cancer, and a few other things. Hubby was in panic mode for almost three weeks when my blood level came back lower than normal. So he went with me to find out the result and ask if I had cancer. They told him the value look better on the second testing and cancer is rule out. We both think it is a tumor that I have.which is benign but that is another story. I let you know via email at the end of the year or beginning the story via email. Enjoy your week dear DD I am about to take a nap. Picking up the hubby from the airport first thing in the morning.

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