The Road Not Taken

I shall be telling this with a sigh,

Somewhere ages and ages hence,
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-

I took the one less travelled by,

And that has made all the difference.

The final stanza of Robert Frost's 'The Road Not Taken' says it all.

At a time of so many choices, decisions and roads diverging off from one another, it's easy to feel bewildered at the prospect of having to decide ultimately which road to follow. Does your decision for the next year affect the rest of your life, will it entail detours which take you away from your goal, do you even have a goal? These are the questions that plague the mind. Every time you feel able to finally decide on something concrete, a sudden doubt creeps in... and before you know it you're off again for another week of wondering what to do with the time you've been given. How can you possibly know what the future will hold from now?

I wonder if Robert Frost had it right. From this perspective we can't know where our choices will lead us, but in a few decades time we will be recounting our lives, and the decisions we make now will determine what stories we will have to tell, and which stories we will wish we could have told. What about all those things you've dreamt of doing? What would happen if you actually did them? What would happen if you didn't... I suppose the paradox is that whilst we long to know our future, we can't. And as often said, even if we did it probably wouldn't give us peace. We can never know if the road we take will lead to where we ultimately want to go. But then, maybe it will take us somewhere even better.

I suppose that's why Frost talks about taking the 'road less travelled', because that is the greater risk. Whether the allusion was merely to a walk through a wood, or whether it has deeper philosophical implications for living, I'm not sure. But one thing I do know, is that the road less travelled is probably the one to take. Take the road that arouses your curiosity, awakens your dreams, and stretches your faith. It will probably be daunting, it might lead through some valleys, and there may be ogres to fight... but... just maybe, it will be worth it. It might make you who you're meant to be.