Getting by with a little help...

"Accept me at my strongest, support me at my weakest." 

~Unknown

I found a quote this morning about praising bridges...

Not just any bridges, but the ones who carried you to where you are today. It made me smile as I considered the humans who have done so much for me, both in quiet and loud ways, to give me the strength to rise another day. While I consider myself to be quite independent and self-sufficient, I'd be kidding myself if I thought I am capable of going it completely alone. Sure, people can be cumbersome and get in the way, but the ones who are our 'bridges' - those who get us over troubled waters - they seem to know how to mold themselves into our lives.

And I think that is an action that takes practice to be fulfilled with precision.

Like a parent walked behind a toddler learning to walk, it's tempting to want to reach in a grab someone's hand when they look like they are toppling over. But that's not how they are going to grow stronger and learn, is it? In fact, it's when they are full of courage and trying to get by in new territory that they are really at their strongest. That's when they need our acceptance and praise, not our guidance and concerns.

Knowing just the time when they need us to support them can be risky.

The people I appreciate the most are the ones who just seem to know when I need support. And the times I feel the most satisfied with my supportive outcomes are when I am told, "Wow, how did you know?" It's not a psychic phenomenon or a spiritual gift. It's the action of thinking about others and looking at the world that surrounds you. Considering others before yourself. 

Being a fountain, not a drain.

Looking to be a bridge, not a crevasse. 

Finding ways to help without hindering growth.

Cheers.