Today’s card forces me to ask a hard question. It’s not one I like to answer at all, but it is one I should probably lead with on most everything I do.
The Seven of Wands from Lisa Hunt‘s gorgeous Fantastical Creatures (U.S. Games 2007) shows a Valkyrie swooping down to a battle field. Her job was to fetch dying warriors who had proven themselves to be heroes. They would then enjoy Valhalla as their reward.
Great idea, right?
But what if those warriors had chosen the wrong battle or the wrong side? What if they had sided with the ice giants instead of Odin?
The hard question is this. “Is this battle mine or someone else’s?”
If I could bottle all the energy I’ve thrown into other people’s wars, I’d be still going just like the Energizer Bunny. If I had channeled that passion into creativity, I might have 800 books published and not eight.
Now, when I hear of this injustice or that, I have to ask myself how mad can I get? How passionate can I be? I’ve learned to pick my battles.
Sadly, grin, I haven’t learned to only back the winners. Too often I am on the losing side simply because we can’t outfight the money. Do I quit?
Nope. I’m either too stubborn or too optimistic to quit. I truly believe that in some cases (GMO/Monsanto for instance) that all we need to do is to keep educating. Eventually folks will understand the damage we are doing to our bodies and our world.
Eventually.
I wonder if the Valkyries will come for me.
Your journal prompt today is, “What battles am I fighting now that I should withdraw from?”
Seven of Wands, Fantastical Creatures, U.S. Games, 2007 [AFF]