When transitions happen, some of us can feel unanchored or destabilized. Change can feel like a leap into the unknown, and with it can come a loss of orientation, identity, or familiarity. In the process of things changing, we may be leaving something we know behind, before whatever we’re replacing it with feels solid or familiar. There’s a gap or void that has to be managed.

Even positive change can feel disorganizing.

A bridge helps us feel supported while things change, by anchoring us to what we’re leaving behind even as we move forward.

As many people approach the transition into 2026, there can be a mix of emotions. Some feel excitement: the joy of a fresh start, motivation to make changes, or hope that something they’ve been waiting to happen might finally occur. Others feel the pull of possibility- for transformation, for growth, for dreams that may be closer to reality.

And yet, every new beginning is also an ending.

When the past year becomes history, or when an old version of ourselves starts to loosen its grip, we may need a bridge or a transitional experience to help us feel secure. We may need something that reminds us of:

• who we already are
• what we’ve already lived through
• what will stay with us even as things change

A bridge allows continuity. It says: I am still me, even while I’m becoming something new.

Of course, not everyone relates to the idea of a “new year” right now. For some of us, Rosh Hashanah is our new year and our new beginning, a time of reflection, accountability, and renewal. And yet, transitions don’t always follow calendars so neatly.

Whether your new year is now, was a few months ago, or is simply unfolding quietly in your own life, the emotional experience is similar. Whenever one chapter closes and another hasn’t fully opened, we are in between. And the in-between is where bridges matter most.

A bridge can be simple and personal to you, whether it’s a concrete object, or a memory, or some other way of holding onto something. Here are some ideas:

• A transitional object, like a memento, photo, or meaningful item
• Remembering moments from the past year that mattered
• A sense of nostalgia that reminds you where you’ve been
• Remembering a dream that came true, even partially
• Staying connected to a friendship that deepened
• Holding onto something you learned about yourself
• Choosing slow, gentle changes that let you feel like yourself as you grow

Sometimes we get ahead of ourselves in our minds. We develop a vision of who we want to be before we’ve had time to grow into it or assimilate it. That gap can feel exciting, but also anxiety-provoking.

At other times, time feels like it’s moving forward without our permission. We may feel pressure to move on before we’re ready, or find ourselves caught between old patterns and new ideas we haven’t yet embodied.

Transitions can leave us longing for comfort, soothing, and familiarity. That longing doesn’t mean we’re doing something wrong. I recommend you indulge the need.

So as we’re approaching 2026, whether you’re celebrating it as New Years or ushering it in uneventfully, don’t forget that 2025 wasn’t all that bad. There were moments worth carrying with you.