Two Roads Diverged

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveller, 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

This poem by Robert Frost has been resounding in my head over the past couple of months as I’ve come to another fork in the road. I feel like I must choose which way to go, even though the answer doesn’t always come easy.

Sometimes when I read this poem, I wonder if Frost thought about the signposts in our lives. Sometimes its not a fork in the road or a monumental decision to be made that determines our course. Sometimes certain people, circumstances, and situations are the signposts that take us off the path we’ve set out for ourselves onto the road less travelled.

I would argue with Frost that life isn’t two roads diverged in a yellow wood, but is more like a highway (yes, like the song). It has many off-ramps that will take you through winding country roads filled with beautiful trees in the fall, some dark unknown tunnels to drive through, majestic mountains where we can see for miles, beautiful scenic beaches along the way, and the occasional fender bender.

There have been years in my life where I had no direction on the highway of life, I was on cruise control. As funny as it sounds, I wouldn’t take back those moments for the world. How would I know true hope unless I experienced true hopelessness? How would I know joy unless I experienced pain? How would I know what it’s like to be successful unless I failed a couple of times along the way? All of these things have helped mold me into who I am and brought me to the place where I am at today.

A friend pointed me to a quote from the book Irresistible Revolution that says:

"… the more I read the scriptures, the more uncertain I became about my plans for the future, or even of the wisdom of making plans in the first place, since God seems to be in the business of messing them up… People started asking me what I was going to do when I graduated from college. People always want to define you by what you do. I started saying, ‘I’m not too concerned with what I am going to do. I am more interested in who I am becoming. I want to be a lover of God and people.’ I was convinced that what we do is not nearly as important as who we are."

I’ve come to realize that life is an awesome journey that can take you so many different places. Like this quote, I’ve come to realize that whether you believe in God or not, life has a funny way of messing up the plans we make. It reminds me of when I’ve gone flying with my friend Jake. You can set a course heading and aim for that heading, but the turbulence is always going to blow you around and take you off course if you’re not careful.

It’s important to have goals and work hard towards them, but don’t let them define you. Understand that life may have different plans for you than what you have for yourself. Don’t let what you do become more important than who you are.

As I approach this fork in the road, I no longer fear. I want to be known as someone who loves God and loves people, whatever job I have will always be secondary to that. But no matter which road I take I realize two things: God is with me, and with Him all things are possible… and that has made all the difference.

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." - Proverbs 3:5-6