Within society it is commonly said that you should not burn your bridges. Many younger folks question exactly what does it mean. Well, from my understanding of what I’ve been taught, it simply means to be careful how you treat others and to always try to keep an open and honest relationship with whomever you come in to contact with because you will never know when you will need someone later on in life.
I am an argumentative person (love to debate) so I can always see the two sides to the story or the reasons why and why not to do something. With that being said, I’ve already stated exactly why it is not good to burn your bridges, now here is my full on opinion as to why sometimes it is a MUST that you do.
In life, there are those people who no matter what you do; they will always be there for you. Most of us can honestly say that those people are perhaps just Mom and Dad. Some of you are blessed to say that you can consider friends to be those people too; good for you. These people stick with you through EVERYTHING to the point where even in death; you know they will defend your honor. These are the people who you should NEVER burn your bridges with, regardless.
THEN of course, there are those people who never see or acknowledge when they do you wrong but always seem to criticize and ridicule you if you should just so happen to step on their toe. There are those people who are “perfect” in their eyes and see every flaw you possess. Certain friends we have amoung us are secretly waiting for our demise and ironically they reveal themselves, whether you see it or not, by constantly giving you advice that they themselves do not adhere to. Failed relationships we tend to cling on to and try to rekindle simply because we are afraid of perhaps being by ourselves or moving on: THESE people and these relationships we MUST burn our bridges!
Why is it that we allow ourselves to continue on in holding friendships and relationships with hypocritical people? We, as humans often tend to say things that we do not mean or go back on our words BUT some people live for hypocrisy. People who always see the negative side of things in life are NOT people we should want to communicate with. Those who only see the wrong in your doings but never theirs are people who WILL step on you to get where they want to go in life. Friends we are most sure of who hate on us and easily give us unhealthy and confusing advice considering the way they live their lives are not real friends. Running back to past relationships after they’ve failed miserably is idiotic and is actually an act of insecurity. Why are we keeping people in our lives who we know mean us no well and why do we go back to what we’ve already left?
If we allow these bridges to remain open, then we are allowing feelings to foster/ linger and the more we allow this, the more we will always look back and want to revisit these bridges. Sometimes in life it is a MUST that we not only let go but do not look back at closed doors. They are closed for a reason and going back through them is only a hindrance to what we can achieve if we were to remain focused on moving forward. Burning certain bridges are a necessary act for us to get ahead in life and to not constantly wait around wondering should we or should we not go back to them. Certain friendships that we are sure of that are not beneficial or inspiring at all in any way to us MUST be disbanded. There is absolutely NO need to hold on to uninspiring friendships or relationships for they only keep us from developing and bondage us to the ignorance of others.
It is extremely important to know which bridges you should not burn but be that as it may, you should never be afraid to let go of things/ people who mean you no well and not fear the reaction you will get from it because in the end, it is only for your best. Many older folks will say, “Never burn your bridges.” Well, I disagree. Some bridges are meant to be burnt simply because some of those are ones we never should’ve crossed in the first place. Be careful of the paths you choose to take because some of them lead you to an intersection where you will have to choose your next step from there. Be wise in choosing your friends and relationships because should there come a point when things are not at all what they have seemed to be, it will be a bittersweet ending to them.
Stop blaming others for the decisions you make and learn to be wise in your decision making for if you are, you won’t have to worry about releasing people/ things free from connections with you. We often say if God brings us to it, He will bring us through it. Whiles this is undoubtedly true, we should be honest with ourselves and admit to the fact that many paths we cross in life are self chosen and therefore, we put ourselves in the predicaments we are in or face. God no doubt still brings us through and closes those doors or keeps us from crossing those paths/ bridges again; so, leave them alone. Move on and do not feel the need to go back to what is already done. Think from now on before you do/ say anything and perhaps we will have fewer regrets in life and not so many bridges to burn. I can only speak from personal experience so trust me when I say, it’s not fun burning certain bridges. There’s a sense of emptiness inside that perhaps, if I were more careful in my decisions, I wouldn’t have to face such difficult choices now. Rise up and wise up; just lookin’ out for ya!!!
Authentically,
Akrizia “MaryAntonique” Smith
