Say the word, bridge, and what comes to mind? It might be a beautiful span like the one that links the Rhode Island mainland to Newport. Perhaps it evokes the homecoming feeling one has crossing the Triboro on the way into Manhattan. I think of the bridge John Read built in Punakha Valley, Bhutan, which allowed his team to complete the ferrying of building supplies from India all the way to their guesthouse, nestled in emerald green rice terraces, on the roof the world. You might consider the word in its less literal sense and think of enterprising individuals and projects that bridge cultures. And, if you think of the flood disaster in Pakistan’s mountain reaches, you would think of the misery that waits on the other side of a bridge that is no more.
Harmon Parker, master mason, has been building bridges in Kenya since 1997, connecting communities to resources and to each other in safety and relative ease. The concept is simple yet profound in the physical as well as the spiritual and psychological sense. To read more about his journey bridging the gap, please read his inspiring story.