I came across a number of bridges on my recent trek in the Alps, some ordinary, some extraordinary.
There were several wooden plank bridges crossing small streams, and a few longer ones with hand rails. These simple bridges allowed our group to cross the water without getting our feet wet. Stepping stones serve the same purpose, but bridges negate the need for tenuously treading on slippery rocks. See a previous post about stepping stones HERE.
My favorite bridges in the Alps were constructed from stone which had been quarried from the surrounding area. These sported a gentle arch, some with a keystone set at the apex of the curve. The stones had weathered with a patina of lichen and moss. I have no idea how old they were, but they looked as if they could have come from a fairy tale, perhaps the one about the three billy-goats and the troll who dared them to cross.
The most spectacular bridge was a long suspension bridge tethered on either side of a deep gorge. With the wind whipping through the canyon, those of us who dared gripped tightly to the two strong cables with each hand. The first few wooden slats were steep, so cross bars had been added for better traction. It bounced a bit, of course, and swayed in the wind, and even though it felt very secure, there was absolutely a measure of fear in crossing it.
Bridges make for great metaphors for some of life’s passages.
Some crossings in our lives are simple and require little in the way to provide a means to get from here to there. Maybe a milestone such braces, a first pair of glasses, or a decision to start a new friendship could be seen this way. You can’t correct an unhealthy bite or poor vision without the aid. You can’t have a friendship without first reaching out.
A graduation from school might be a simple bridge for some, but it may need to be longer and stronger for others. A hard won promotion, a birth, a marriage, a divorce, a cure for a simple illness—these could require a quite sturdy bridge, with handrails and good traction.
Other obstacles in life, great chasms of hardship, will need to be crossed by the more tenuous suspension bridge. Or at least, that’s how it feels. How do you get to other side of this gaping canyon of illness, suffering, or grief?
By taking one step at a time, watching your feet and holding your breath while the wind whistles around you and you feel the depth of the fall if you slip. By holding on tightly to the guide wires placed by those who went first and built the bridge or made it stronger. By knowing that others have crossed this bridge before. By trusting that the bridge will hold and taking tentative steps at first until you are more sure of your footing.
May the bridges in your life permit safe crossing on your journey.