Bridges... Not the Water Under Them

All poles are inseparable from their opposites. All angles are joined. Every positive is born of its antithesis. As we journey from one side to the other, passing through the grey landscape of black and white, shadow and light, it is the bridges that provide perspective. From these sacred byways we can see how both sides are united, and observe the infinite flow of interdependent events that momentarily ripple in the waters beneath our feet.

There have been times in my life where the way forward was ended by a determination to hold on. We may hold on to the past. We may hold on to a dream for the future. We may hold on to a story without leaving room for another version. There are so many ways we hold on to our lives. Eventually, holding on becomes holding out, withholding, and being held hostage to the very thing, idea, or feeling that we covet.

Bridges are built as we loosen our grasp, our commitment, our reliance on the riverbank. When we let go, we discover that the river joins as much as it divides. All things turn into and upon themselves eventually. Here, now, on the bridge between, there is wonder and possibility in the full circumference of the horizon.

This painting was hand drawn over months as I worked to let go. I kept thinking about the phrase, "a bridge over troubled water." It's the bridge, not the water under, that makes the way forward possible.

Vision by Joshua S. Levin Soundscape by Jay Atwood