Burning Bridges

We cross our bridges when we come to them and burn them behind us, with nothing to show for our progress except a memory of the smell of smoke, and a presumption that once our eyes watered. - Tom Stoppard

I heard this quote last night on Criminal Minds and it struck me, not because of the sad overtures that the show weighed it down with, but because of the hope that it somehow offered.

I’ve been known to burn bridges, and am often chastised for my stubborn rigidity, but I don’t think that severing ties is always a bad thing. Why allow the past to haunt you and risk it repeating itself? I think if more people burned bridges the world would be a better place. Smokier perhaps, but somehow more clear as well.

People take bridges for granted anyways. Maybe, if the promise of a bridge weren’t always there, people would respect and cherish the bridges in their lives more.