In 1920 Robert Frost wrote his beautiful, inspiring and now famous poem; The Road Not Taken. Of course its title is commonly mistake to be The Road Less Traveled for obvious reasons. I’ve often wondered why Frost gave it the title he did. Here is the poem:  

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood and looked down one as far as I could to where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair, and having perhaps the better claim, because it was grassy and wanted wear; though as for that the passing there had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay in leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back.

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 traveled by, And that has made all the difference.  

I think this poem speaks to our need to make choices, and to the regret we feel making some choices. I know life can be hard. For some it is seemingly impossible – unfortunately there are some that cannot even continue down the road let alone choose which fork to take. But do you really think YOU are the first one to be where you are today? Are you beat and broken? If you are feeling down or feeling a failure – do you think you alone have been picked for this sad life?  

You may feel like that, but I assure you many many many souls have gone before you. Millions have come to this fork in the road. Some chose the road less traveled, some chose the other. What the poem doesn’t mention is the number of people that went back the way they came out of fear of getting lost. Or those that laid down and wept thinking they were already lost, until someone came along and rescued them.  

Just think how many souls are now watching you in admiration because of what you will pick. You have chosen and done so much more then they ever did! They are with you now rooting you on. Happy to see you can do something they could never do.  

Bright Blessings ~ Richard