Liliputin-4845

Cross That Arcole Bridge When You Come to It ... "
Napoleon Bonaparte

Liliputins. What, the heck, is this?
http://stihi.ru/2021/11/24/7101


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What Does Cross That Bridge When You Come to It Mean?
Definition: Solve that problem when it arises.

Origin of Cross That Bridge When You Come to It
To understand this idiom, imagine every difficulty you have as a river. To solve the problem, you must cross that river by going over an old bridge in disrepair.

And because there are many problems on life’s journey, you will have to cross many dangerous bridges. However, it won’t help you to stress out about all of these bridges at once. It’s better to focus on each one as it approaches.

In other words, you will deal with a problem (crossing a bridge) once it arises.


This idiom first appeared in writing in the year 1851 in the work titled The Golden Legend by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. The full line was, Don’t cross the bridge till you come to it, is a proverb old and of excellent wit.

This suggests that the proverb was already known at that time.

Examples of Cross That Bridge When You Come to It
cross that bridge when you come to it origin In this dialogue, a brother and sister are talking about all the problems the brother is experiencing.

Maria: What’s the matter? You look very concerned.

Franco: I feel stressed because my boss hasn’t paid me for the past month of work.


Maria: That’s awful! Did you ask him to pay you?

Franco: No, because I don’t want him to fire me. And if he refuses, then I don’t have the money to pay a lawyer to get my unpaid wages back from him.

Maria: Cross that bridge when you come to it. First, remind him to pay you. Deal with that first. There’s no sense in worrying about something that may or may not happen.


cross the bridge when it comes The second example shows two university students who are talking about the worries they have regarding their schedule for the next year.

Lorenzo: I wish I could sign up for classes earlier. I’m worried that all my required courses will be full before I have a chance to register. And if that happens, I won’t graduate on time. If I don’t graduate on time, I’ll be behind schedule on my life plan! This could disrupt the entire rest of my life!

Alba: Cross that bridge when you come to it. First, focus on trying to enroll in as much as you can. If you can’t get into every class you need, then you’ll find some other solution. However, it won’t do you any good to worry about that right now.

More Examples
The excerpt below is from an article about a coach with cancer.

Taylor says he’s had general conversations with Myers and has told Snyder, “I hope you coach here as long as you want, and we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.” –USA Today
This excerpt is about a tax audit.

“Again, we’ll cross that bridge when it comes to it,” Spicer said last month. “But the President has been very clear throughout the campaign and consistent that he’s under a routine audit.” –USA Today
Summary
The phrase cross that bridge when you come to it is another way to say deal with one issue at a time.

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The Battle of Arcole or Battle of Arcola (15–17 November 1796) was fought between French and Austrian forces 25 kilometres (16 mi) southeast of Verona during the War of the First Coalition, a part of the French Revolutionary Wars.
Attempting to break the stalemate near Arcole, Bonaparte ordered General of Brigade Jean Joseph Guieu with two demi-brigades to boat across the Adige below its confluence with the Alpone at Albaredo d'Adige. He also sent a French battalion across the Alpone by boat near its mouth. The latter unit fought its way north along the east bank dike.
Trying to inspire his men to attack, Bonaparte grabbed a flag and stood in the open on the dike "about 55 paces" from the bridge. He remained miraculously untouched, but several members of his staff were hit by the intense fire and his aide-de-camp, Jean-Baptiste Muiron, was killed. An unknown officer dragged Bonaparte out of the line of fire and the commanding general ended up in the muddy ditch.
Adding to the confusion, the Austrians launched a sortie from Arcole and defeated the French battalion on the east bank. In the evening, Guieu crossed at Albaredo and eventually managed to flush the Austrian defenders out of Arcole. At midnight, worried that Davidovich was about to fall upon his rear, Bonaparte withdrew Guieu from Arcole and pulled most of his troops back across the Adige. He left a garrison on the Austrian side of the river to hold his bridgehead.