The moon rose over the thick cover of the trees and vines, as the young man quickly moved through the jungle. The sound of foot falls seem to follow him. They seemed to chase him faster and faster. His pack was filled with everything he had gathered in his life. It was his life savings. The collective treasure of his entire experience tied safely in a pack.As he moved forward, he came to a cavernous ravine. Suspended across the ravine was a rope bridge. He sat his pack down and quickly lit his torch. He carefully, yet hurriedly, made his way across the bridge. When reaching the other side he stopped and used his torch to burn the ropes that held the bridge. As the bridge burned he sighed with relief.
Then as the burning realization rose to his consciousness he cried out “NO, my pack!” Through the flames he could see it resting on the other side of the ravine with the bridge going up in flames between him and his treasure.
There he stood safely on his side but it had cost him everything.
This little handmade parable illustrates the danger of burning bridges.
How many men have burned a bridge and then later realized that what they needed or what they wanted was on the other side?
Relationships are such a valuable commodity. We must protect our relationships. We must put effort into cultivating and maintaining our relationships.
We must be bridge builders and bridge menders.
I know that there are times that the bridge burning is inevitable. Many times the burning is out of your hands.
However, it is to our benefit to maintain every bridge that we can.
1. Leave well
Try to leave well. Be kind. Be respectful. Be careful. Be sensitive.
2. Never tear down the place or the people you just left
Silence is better than evil communication
3. Always value the investment that places and people have made in your life
No matter how bad a situation has been there is always lessons learned
4. Learn to say “I was wrong”
5. Learn to say “I am sorry”
