On Bridges and Spirituality

Tags

bridges, connections, courage, freedom, healing

I decided that I was going to walk farther than ever before along my recently discovered walking trails around the lake. I figured that I would go as far around the circle that I was allowed, and then have to double-back on my path. It would be a good opportunity to view the morning interplay of light, water, sky, birds and trees from both directions — going clockwise and counter-clockwise.

What I hadn’t accounted for was that I would be presented with an invitation at the three-quarter mark around the circle. It was lying hidden among the tall grasses, in a shallow formed by the meeting of two down-slopes on either side of a moist stream bed. Perhaps the smallest of bridges I have ever encountered — one that a tall person like me would even leap over.

The invitation of the bridge created a decision point, an opportunity. Do I abandon my original plan to double-back and experience the trail from both directions, or do I accept, cross over, complete the circle and engage a different experience in that space and time?

We often encounter such ‘bridge experiences’ in our lives. Bridges tend to hold a fascination for most humans engaged in exploration and discovery, because they represent new possibilities. A bridge need not necessarily be a physical entity – far from it. People and practices, and their ability to facilitate new connections can serve as bridges too.

In many ways, music, art, dance, painting, sewing, hiking, reading, meditating, day-dreaming, sky-watching, cloud-spotting, gardening — name your favorite — can become a bridges. When we accept the invitation of any experience that transports us into a realm that creates sustainable silence, stillness, peace, we become a ‘bridge person’, don’t we?

And yet, we often refuse the invitation of bridges. Fear and uncertainty make us reluctant to build them, to cross over them, or invite others to cross with us. We often choose to double-back and keep reworking our well-trodden paths, rather than engage the ‘new bridge’ experiences, no matter how small the leap or crossing may be. What can help us accept the invitation?

Remembrance that faith, courage and grace are our friends can help us be bridges for others. When we experience our ability to help people in small ways, we gain spiritual strength. When we accept the help of those who have crossed before us, we open our heart to the light. In making small bridge choices, we plant the seeds of bigger crossings.

We are almost home. It’s time to take the leap, to cross over. Are you ready? Let’s walk.

The smallest of bridges, can set us free…

On Bridges and Community

Tags

bridges, community, spirituality

I have been walking across a lot of bridges lately. The mere act of walking across a bridge that creates a lot of emotions like serenity and tranquility, a sense of gratitude for the one who created the bridge for us, a feeling of inspiration within to share our experience with others and create bridges for those who may have never experienced the joy of walking across one… Sometimes, the landscape on either side of the bridge may be world’s apart, but often, the differences are more in our perception than in reality. Sometimes, the bridge may be over calmly flowing shallow waters, but often, the value of a bridge is truly appreciated when it helps us cross over turbulent, deep waters. Sometimes, the mere act of crossing a bridge may require courage, particularly if the bridge starts to wobble with our first step, and at other times, we may feel doubt, resistance and trepidation about the unknowns what we may find on the other side of yet to be explored landscapes.

The crossing of bridges does not happen merely in the physical realm. It happens often in our work life that we are challenged to cross bridges and/or create bridges for others to cross and meet each other. One example of bridge-work happens at conferences, particularly those with an international flavor about them. A kaleidoscope of cultures, languages, ideas, and perspectives for the current state-of-the-art, and diverse visions of the future and the paths to pursue to advance the state-of-the-art are brought together in international meetings of minds. New partnerships are forged by those who are willing to put aside their egos in favor of collaboration; those who are reluctant to take the first step to cross over the waters of not-invented-here syndrome, or even meet their potential collaborators halfway across the bridge, are left on the sidelines on obsolescence. I have personally witnessed all of these scenarios in the aerospace conferences that I often attend ~ those individuals and companies who take advantage of the bridges created by the organizers to form mini-friendships create tremendous new value for the global community and inspire others to do the same!

We may be familiar with the challenges which are posed to us when we would rather stay put, in our comfort zone, rather than cross a bridge to say hello to a new neighbor who moved in just a few doors down. We are familiar with the challenge of starting a conversation with a new face that we encounter in our travels, particularly if our initial attempt at reaching out isn’t met with warmth. Some of us may be familiar with the challenge of arriving in a brand new country, half a world apart, and not even knowing where the river lies, let alone knowing about how, why and where of building a bridge to cross the culture gap. What are some challenges you have faced in crossing bridges? Or in constructing bridges for others to cross?

In the spiritual realm, crossing of bridges represents opportunities to share and exchange our family and community values, our beliefs, our customs and more with people and the communities that they represent. Bridge-building is one of the stated purposes of our spiritually oriented conversations every Sunday on twitter (and beyond) in #SpiritChat. The group of people who gather and share every week, contribute to the building and repair of the bridges that have been built by the community over time. The ‘elders’ (regulars) of the community serve as the strong pylons and often hold the hands of the ‘younger’ ones, to encourage them to step forward in connection. The ‘younger’ ones who are new to the community, bring an infusion of energy, new ideas, new materials for bridge construction and encourage new perspectives and questions. It is our willingness to show up and be present with our light that keeps the community and her bridges relevant, crossable, and strong.

We all have the light to be the love that is a ‘bridge person’. Don’t we?

Kumud

P.S. Join us in #SpiritChat Sunday Novemeber 1st 2015, at 9amET/2pmUTC/7:30pm India (after a one-hour shift ahead of the clocks from 1pmUTC to 2pmUTC in North America). Bring your light and your love ~ you are the community, and only you can be the bridge for some people who see you as the bright light that you are. I will make sure to bring some questions 🙂