"The Road Not Taken"
by Robert Frost

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 travelled by,

And that has made all the difference.

This is my favorite poem of all time, because it expresses the feeling of wistful regret that most of us will face at one time or other during our life. We all must make choices. Sometimes it is a clear moral choice between right and wrong, other times the answer is much more grey and complicated. I have found that many choices I make require a certain amount of courage...courage to take the path less travelled. A path not many have taken before or will take in the future. A path that no other person can advise us about. A path that is difficult, covered over with thorny bramble, muddy, and discouraging to the spirit. But there is a verse in Isaiah that has comforted me of late. It is a verse that reminds me God is always there, providing encouragment and affirmation when I choose the right path: "And your ears shall hear a voice behind you, saying, 'This is the way, walk in it,' when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left." --Isaiah 30:21