Author’s Reflection

“BURNT BRIDGES”

“BURNT BRIDGES” was written from the pain of realizing that not every connection is meant to survive. Sometimes the hardest thing to do is walk away from people, places, memories, and relationships that once meant everything — but kept hurting you every time you tried to go back.

This song is about letting go, but not in a peaceful, pretty way. It is about the kind of letting go that comes after too many chances, too many broken promises, and too much pain. There comes a point where the bridge does not burn because you are cruel. It burns because you finally understand that crossing back over would destroy you.

For me, “BURNT BRIDGES” is about survival. It is about learning that boundaries can feel like fire when you first set them, but sometimes that fire is the only thing that protects what is left of you. Not every goodbye comes with closure. Sometimes closure is choosing yourself when nobody else did.

Writing this song gave me a way to speak to the anger, grief, and freedom that come with walking away. There is sadness in it, but there is also power. There is heartbreak, but there is also healing. Sometimes you have to burn the bridge so the pain cannot keep finding its way back to you.

This song is for anyone who has ever stayed too long, loved too hard, forgiven too much, or kept returning to something that kept breaking them. It is for the moment you finally say, “I cannot go back there anymore.”

The bridge may be burned, but I am still standing on this side of the fire.

— FreeSpirit