A commissioned poem for the bridge was written by John Ashbery.
"And now I cannot remember how I would have had it.
It is not a conduit (confluence?) but a place.
The place, of movement and an order.
The place of old order.
But the tail end of the movement is new.
Driving us to say what we are thinking.
It is so much like a beach after all,
where you stand and think of going no further.
And it is good when you get to no further.
It is like a reason that picks you up and places you
where you always wanted to be.
This far, it is fair to be crossing, to
have crossed.
Then there is no promise in the other.
Here it is. Steel and air, a
mottled presence, small panacea and lucky for us.
And then it got very cool."
Whenever I see the bridge, walk across it, or read the poem, it takes me back to when I first started training in Aikido; as I lived in Uptown and would often ride my bike to the dojo.
Many of the lines stir thoughts of Aikido training such as "The place, of movement and an order" remind me of the structure of class, the lining up, warm-ups, basic movements and training.
It also reminds me of the seasonal cycles we experience so well in Minnesota, as well as the cycles we go through in our individual lives.
Look for connections in the many experiences of your life and there will always be a poem or stanza that evokes wonderful thoughts and memories.
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