by Gaspar Robles

I took on the bridge project because I had a vision of a thing of beauty at the crossroads of our community. My plans originally included more extensive stonework, but in the end I settled for a strong and simple foundation with a pyramid at one end. I collected stones for over four years, but the reality is that I had all the ideas but never laid a stone until Travis came, with his 25 years of experience as a mason, tiler and general builder. He has done an inspiring job with meticulous and creative care.

On the mystical side, one of the ideas I had was to put stones in the wall from all over the world, thus building an energetic bridge back to their source countries. Many wonderful contributions have been made by the community and neighbors to this end. Travis also spent time researching and building special Organite devices (based on Wilhelm Reich’s Orgone principles) as a means to possibly clear the air/water of pollution, EMF, chem trails, etc. On the physical side, our process included digging out, rebuilding and reinforcing sections of the ground up to five feet underneath the corner stones and then cementing those to the ground in a continuous pour. We spent extra time and effort making sure the work would survive long-term vehicle traffic and possible creek overflow.

After Travis designed and formed up the walls of the bridge, several people helped when the cement truck arrived—thanks to Brent, Ryan, Seaver and several others for timely help at that stage. We faced the concrete walls with attractive stones and crystals. Ivy had the idea for Chakra-color stones and I envisioned engraving them with the corresponding Sanskrit symbols. Travis spent a day, with a little technical drawing help from Peggy (thanks, Peggy!) engraving the symbols.

In all, Travis spent a lot of thought and energy making sure the vision I had for the bridge would have the best chance of long-term durability and beauty, much as I imagine he did for his home remodeling clients. It’s been a wonderful father/son project for me and I look forward to completing it with him in the near future!

Gaspar Robles, an 11-year member, founded the free store and tool share at Earthaven. Gaspar dispenses flower essences, guides trauma release exercises, and offers chiropractic care in the community. Travis Robb is Gaspar’s son.