Carla and I love documentaries. Our new favorite is Human Planet by BBC. It showcases how humans live in some of the most extreme environments of the world.
One episode showed the people in Meghalaya, India. They live in one of the wettest places on earth and the rivers threaten to overflow and flood them constantly.
The solution they came up with? Living bridges.
Young tree roots are positioned across the river while they are flexible. Over decades, they become stronger and stronger until they can support people walking over them. This bridge is natural, has no harm on the environment, and will last through any storm or flood.
But how do they make it? Through generations. Check out the video below. The relevant part starts at 1:47.
Halle teaches his niece Juliana to continue the project after him. This kind of accomplishment is only possible if the generations can work together. If each generation only thought of themselves or if they broke relationship from one another, it would not happen.
But because they work together, in Halle’s words, “This bridge will grow for 500 years. Your children will use it and your children’s children.”
As the narrator said, “It is an epic project that no man can complete in his his lifetime.”
It got me thinking, what am I working on that will last beyond me? Is there something I’m doing today that will benefit Philip and his children? What lasting legacy will be left by my life?
Hundreds of years from now, people may not remember Halle and Juliana. But there will be a hopefully be a bridge that serves thousands because of the way they’re living today.
I don’t care if no one remembers my name, reads my blog, or watches our wedding video hundreds of years from now. But I pray there will be living bridges – bridges that connect people to God and to one another – because of the way we’re living today.
