The military, after crossing a bridge to get to their target destination, would burn that same bridge down so that the enemy could not cross and follow their tracks. My source (http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/burn+bridges) says it was a strategic maneuver. Is the phrase "burning your bridges" a strategic one too?
The philosophy means that you sever certain relationships and never look back. I wonder how many people live by this philosophy and whether it's all that its cut out to be. Nobody wants the odor of a sour relationship to cling to them. It's like a stigma that bogs down your life and looms over your happy thoughts. Yet, at the same time it adds to your growth....or even descent. That's why people rid themselves of the whole affair altogether. Anything to stop the past from haunting us, from hurting us again. We don't like to get as dirty as we claim we do. If something went horribly wrong in a relationship why would we stay in the mess? So we say goodbye and wash our hands clean.
How do you know which bridges need to be burned? What if you're giving up too early? What if never looking back means moving blindly forward? I feel like you never know for certain if cutting someone off is the right thing to do, especially if the relationship was meaningful once. Maybe we grow weary of trying to resurrect the relationship. Maybe we are too proud to try to resurrect the relationship. And then maybe in the end, it was never going to work out anyway. I wish there was a surefire way of knowing who is worth fighting for, who is worth keeping bonds with.
Some relationships seem impossible to sever. It takes a strong person to burn their bridges and move on with certainty. You would have to be confident that your decision is the most strategic for your happiness, or whoever's happiness you value the most. I believe some bridges are worth a second walk through, no matter how unstable the planks.
Jim Croce sang
"cause tables are meant for turnin'
And people are bound to change
And bridges are meant for burnin'
When the people and memories they join aren't the same"
If bridges were meant for burning then I hope the ashes are salvageable.
