I gave my best to you & the bridge
(Adaptation of Episode 12, Breathing Out Stars Podcast)
I was eleven years old the first time I read The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder in school.
This book has stuck with me for decades.
The book is told from the point of view of a Peruvian friar, Brother Juniper — who watched the collapse of an old Incan rope bridge while five people have fallen to their deaths. The bridge was on the road from Cuzco to Lima, Peru. Brother Juniper fashions himself as a historian – and he examines the lives of these people who fell to their deaths when the bridge collapsed and tries to discern why it was their turn to die — why it was them.
The book is a sublime read and a sublime telling — and comes to the conclusion (not a big spoiler) — that those few who died had come to some sort of understanding of love. From the last few words of the book: "There is a land of the living and a land of the dead and the bridge is love, the only survival, the only meaning."
This was a trying week for many — and I am not going to lie — for me as well. A week that took a certain kind of courage that I am not accustomed to having to have need of.
And we move forward.
We move forward trusting that our hearts will endure. The only way forward is forward. We move forward to continue living, despite all conditions, because living is what we do.
Remember everyone has a part that they play in the drama that is our collective lives.
Plant seeds in a garden that you may never see. Reach high – someone has to.
Goodness does not always emerge in everyday life — but when things are fraught and people are not — people who emit light — who care for others — who are guardians of their communities are suddenly visible. If you want to see the moon — then you have to accept the night.
Things are challenging. Yes. They have been. They will be.
But know that you can rise to be your best self — you can reach beyond yourself — look at the big picture of our times and hope for a better tomorrow. Persist. Resist.
This was the thing that inspired me this week:
American Anthem (Norah Jones)
All we've been given
By those who came before
The dream of a nation
Where freedom would endure
The work and prayers
Of centuries
Have brought us to this day
What shall be our legacy?
What will our children say?
Let them say of me
I was one who believed
In sharing the blessings
I received
Let me know in my heart
When my days are through
America America
I gave my best to you
Each generation from the plains
To distant shore with the gifts
What they were given
Were determined
To leave more
Valiant battles fought together
Acts of conscience fought alone
These are the seeds
From which America has grown
Let them say of me
I was one who believed
In sharing the blessings
I received
Let me know in my heart
When my days are through
America America
I gave my best to you
For those who think
They have nothing to share
Who fear in their hearts
There is no hero there
Know each quiet act
Of dignity is
That which fortifies
The soul of a nation
That never dies
Let them say of me
I was one who believed
In sharing the blessings
I received
Let me know in my heart
When my days are through
America America
I gave my best to you.
Think about these words. Let them percolate within you.
And as Thornton Wilder says:
" the bridge is love, the only survival, the only meaning."