Building bridges and relationships
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4th September 1964, the Forth Road Bridge was opened spanning over the Firth of Forth, connecting Edinburgh and Fife together. Exactly 53 years later on Monday 4th September 2017 it was the official opening of the Queensferry Crossing, and I was lucky enough to be one of the 50,000 people to be given the once in a lifetime opportunity to walk across the bridge.
The way in which bridges come about is because someone saw an aspect of living that was difficult and needed improving. They wanted to make things easier and better, so were inspired to change this. It’s the same when it comes to a relationship. When people initially meet, someone wants to start a relationship. Whether it be in the form of friends or potential partners, the motivation and drive was there, and no matter the type of relationship, each requires effort much like any bridge.
Someone doesn't just think to themselves, “I think I’ll build a bridge today” and goes out to do exactly that. It takes an amount of thought, planning, and decision making before they can even begin to gather the materials needed to then to start the work of building a bridge.
In any relationship someone has to be willing to take the initial step that is required, even more so when going through a rough patch or difficult time. Effort is a must to get across the river that flows between two people - and it will take time.
Thinking about the Queensferry Crossing, it was originally planned to be completed by December 2016 but was postponed till September this year after being faced with several delays. Again, relationships may not go the way originally planned and instead take the bumpy road, but remember that there are alternative routes around the barrier ahead.
To me, the Forth Road Bridge has come to symbolise the structure that connects a family together over years. Metaphorically and quite literally with half my family living over on the North side of the river whilst the other half live on the south side of the river in Edinburgh. We now also have the excitement of the new Queensferry Crossing which symbolises the bonds which will continue to grow and develop for the future generations to come. These two bridges, alongside the Forth Rail Bridge, cover a stretch of water with the purpose of connecting one place to another, and connecting one area of people to another. In this case the bridge spans over the Firth of Forth, but when it comes to people, it can be the hurt between a couple or the upset within an individual. Either way, the bridge can only connect if someone is to take the first step in the beginning, and counselling can help you make that step and work towards a better, brighter future.
Kathleen
