The Burning Bridge

(P.S. --  This piece was written when I had put an image of a burning bridge as my dp on gtalk)

I have seen many people not able to understand my profile pic (I had put it as my gtalk display pic too). Well, its that of a burning bridge.

A burning bridge. I know it's quite weird to have that for your profile image, especially for the fact that your profile image says volumes about all the different facets of yours - your mood, your temperament, your outlook, etc. etc. etc.

Well.... the same can be said about my profile image too. For me, it epitomises a lot of how we go about our lives. Bridges are mostly burned by plundering armies as they advance so as to cut out all routes of escape and/or by fleeing thousands as they try to delay those following them. But basically both of them do the same thing - burn bridges, cut communication, cripple the other side. And all that is left, of a thriving place once, are the remnants in form of ashes and ruins.

I think this is how we treat our lives or relations too - THE OTHER SIDE. This is what we do when we have a major fight or, to sugar-coat it, an enormous disagreement. Cut down the contact, remove all means of communication, put a 'no-entry' board on all doors and windows and guess what, you have crippled the other side into, to quote a song, 'crawling back to you'. The ashes here are those of memories, good times spend together, tears and a relationship gone horribly sour.

But in doing so, we forget one thing. It is not the enemies only who need a bridge to cross the stream. Our friends are also going to come via that route only. When people burn a bridge, they not only keep the enemy out, but also, stop help from reaching them. Similarly, when we are cutting all means of communication, we are stopping any way there is to reconcile. There is nothing in this world (not that I have come across, at least) which cannot be talked out and sorted. Just as one needs both the hands to clap, it is important to hear the other person's version too so as to decide upon something.

But I guess this is what is known as being blinded by rage. At times we tend to get so angry that we forget all means, signs and ways of rationalism. What has happened suddenly becomes too much to forget and sit down at a negotiation table. I wish there was some way to tell everyone to sit down, talk it out, sort things up, cross the chasm but don't burn the bridge........