People have a need to express what they think and feel. It refers to being admired for some attribute that one may or may not actually posses, such as honesty, wisdom, kindness, good judgment, great personality, etc. Well, I'm sure you get the idea.
Bridges are both figuratively and literally ways to cross some impassable object.
Bridges are found all over the world ranging from crude rope bridges in the jungles of tropic rainforests to the great steel and concrete wonders of our biggest cities. They assist us in crossing rivers, canyons, and ravines. It seems that something important and desirable should be on the other side to justify building these bridges. What is important and desirable does not always remain so. Here is an ancient bridge that has no sign of anything on the other side.