Crossing Our Own Bridges

/ still a dreamer

RopeBridge-EvaSchuster2

When I first saw this photo, I had to swallow hard. That is not a bridge I’d be able to cross. The photograph is of the Carrick-a-rede-rope bridge in Northern Ireland and connects the mainland to a tiny island. It is now a tourist attraction, but was once used by salmon fishermen for over 350 years. It is 98 feet, above rocks and the sea, built only of wood and ropes. It is easy to imagine how it would sway when one crosses to the little island on the other side.

It reminds me of  bridges in my own life … the sometimes difficult paths that I am traveling to places I want to go. Just like real bridges, some of these can be crossed in hours, days, or maybe years. Some are nice and secure and amazingly happy, like when I used to walk over the Brooklyn Bridge, and some are much more challenging, like this one would be. Some feel like they have a sheer drop to the sea and cliffs below.

We all have bridges we need … or want … to cross. I’d had a discussion of this metaphor with a friend a few years ago; a particular challenge I faced, (and still do), seemed the equivalent of crossing this rope bridge. How would I get where I wanted to go? She suggested I imagine the rope bridge bathed in white light, one continuous safety net. I accepted this in theory, but it didn’t banish my fears. And then I had a thought. If I really, truly wanted to get there, I could crawl. Maybe not a bold or terribly brave move, but if that’s all I can do right now? Then I can crawl.

And sometimes that’s what we have to do. Some days we can dance around and through wherever we want to go. Others we can walk with our head held high. But if we sometimes have to crawl to get there,  at least we can say we never gave up. One day, one step at a time.

We’ll all get there.

7 thoughts on “Crossing Our Own Bridges”

  1. I suggest going for any bridge. Toss the fear and just put one foot in front of the other. Crawling is too messy and we humans are much more adept at walking~with head high. Fear is just in our heads anyway! Toss the monkey and GO FOR IT!! ;-)

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    • I couldn’t agree more that fear is all in our heads, but it can also be quite daunting, depending on the issue. I’m all for walking with head held high – dancing, better yet! – but if that’s not possible at a given time for one reason or another, then I feel better moving forward at whatever pace I can than not moving at all. And so there are days when I delight in running over the bridge, and days when I can only take baby steps. It’s all part of the process. :-)

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  3. I really enjoy your analogy. It actually helps me a lot, because like you, I’m not sure I could cross that bridge… but I could if I had to. Crawling if we must! So true. As I move forward through issues that bring up fear, I’ll think of this bridge and know that I can do it.
    Beautiful post! Thank you so much for sharing.
    Blessings, Gina

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    • I thought afterwards that I could probably cross it if a baby or helpless animal was stuck along the way and faced falling to its death. Then maybe I could move pretty quickly. But the more abstract idea of our own goals, our personal fears …. that adds a whole layer of complexity. Life is funny.
      And blessings to you, too! Jeanne

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