Bridge to Where: Facing Fears & Finding Healing

Bridges have played out themes throughout my life. I like bridges. And I hate bridges. The bridge is often used as a spiritual symbol, symbolizing connection. Symbolizing from the known to the unknown. A bridge is often used to represent birth to death. Or a rainbow bridge more often to depict from death to the afterlife.

By Lulu Trevena

I am seeking for the bridge which leans from the visible to the invisible through reality. ~ Max Beckmann

We are all journey-people, traveling at times haphazardly and purposefully through our lives, coming to bridges and crossroads often.

Through out my life I have been graced with awareness of symbols and signs; messages that just appear, provoking answers to questions or bringing a gentle nudge of awareness.

Although some messages can be more dramatic: a friend of mine was hit by a bus—physically not literally. I welcome the insights and awareness that signs and symbols can bring, before unknown forces send a bus heading down the road towards you.

Bridges have played out themes throughout my life. I like bridges. And I hate bridges.

The bridge is often used as a spiritual symbol, symbolizing connection. Symbolizing from the known to the unknown. A bridge is often used to represent birth to death. Or a rainbow bridge more often to depict from death to the afterlife.

Practically speaking they are strong man-made structures joining two areas, often unique and creativity personified. And even perhaps defying logic to our human brain.

When visiting my daughter recently in Florida, we were driving together and looming towards me was this magnificent bridge. I see it. I acknowledge it in my thoughts, and then the fear arises; I find I have a strong reaction, a palatable fear, and a mind paralysis of sorts.

I remind her to drive across in the middle lane. She has heard me say this many times over the years. My family doesn’t get it. They think I am a bit lame where bridges are concerned. One of my sister-in-laws will take detour after detour, so as to avoid a bridge, and they can most certainly bring up fears in some people. Yes, I am one of them.

I have had a reoccurring dream for decades. I am driving over a bridge, when I go off the edge, and I am sinking into the water in a locked car. No escape.

My stomach turns over as I write this. I know the pressure of water against the car door whilst it is dropping downward would be impossible to get free from. I know Hollywood movies show it differently. I am not convinced by that cinematography. I have dissected and looked at this fear often to get some perspective, some clarity in the hope of putting this fear to bed once and for all.

There are three keys elements to the dream: the bridge, the height and the water. All cloaked in fear, with no escape possible. We, humans are born with only two innate fears. The fear of falling and the fear caused by loud noises. All other fears are learned or adopted through our own experience or from the behavior of others around us in the first seven years of life.

I have a fear of heights and bridges are always more than a few inches off the ground.

Not that the fear of heights has stopped me doing things from varying heights. I have done a solo free-fall parachute jump six times, and I tandem paraglided off mountains in Switzerland. I have also been in an ultra light plane without contained structure to speak of—just bones of mechanical parts. As a world traveler I have flown over both land and ocean many times. I have climbed mountains and gone on ski chair lifts, yet I am one to hold the railing on a high gradient escalator.

I do not fear water per say. I am a strong swimmer. As children we learnt to swim; my mother insisted this. She, as a child had an intense swimming introduction experience, laced with all the fear endorphins possible.

She was rowed out in a small boat, pushed in the water and told to find her way back to shore. She did not get over of being terrified of the water, especially on a jetty, dock or bridge. I believe fear, whether conscious or unconscious, revealed or kept secret can get handed down from generation to generation; I am most certainly still working on mine. But like anything, bringing awareness and taking conscious action can support clearing them.

I take this bridge alone to heal. May it connect me from the physical to something deeper.

Go to the truth beyond the mind. Love is the bridge. ~ Stephen Levine

Sometimes, if you aren’t sure about something, you just have to jump off the bridge and grow your wings on the way down. ~ Danielle Steel

Lulu is a Lover, Mother, Home-Birther, Seeker, Yogi, Explorer of Beauty and Creativity.  Aussie born and raised, citizen of he Earth and resides in Atlanta, Georgia. Lulu has a background in leadership, training, yoga, raw food preparation, and creativity. Her favorite word is Epiphany. Lulu is a champion of human rights and a fierce Mumma/Mama Bear to her children. She wants to know you as a human in the being-ness of life not in the doing-ness. She empowers women to have their own voice, deeply honoring all their emotions, and self-expression. Her greatest pleasures are found in quite moments and with those in her heart circle. Lulu Trevena is the author of the stunning “Soul Blessings” book, and “Moments of Transformation” Inspirational Card Deck, a compassionate facilitator of women’s group, speaker and Creatrix of Live Life with Wonder. You can find her at www.livelifewithwonder.com

Photo: Pixabay

Editor: Dana Gornall

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