Poetry can often be interpreted differently by different people. “The Road Not Taken,” by Robert Frost, shown below, is a great example. Whether one interprets this poem to be about making difficult choices, individualism or the paths we take in life, it causes one to stop and think about 3 take-aways from the paths we take.
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.
One thing is for sure, we will all travel down various paths in life. Some will be easier than others, some will bring different rewards, some may even appear to be dead-ends, no matter what, we can learn valuable life lessons from the paths we travel.
Every Path Has Challenges, Obstacles and Opportunities
Every opportunity has a difficulty but it doesn’t mean the opportunity doesn’t exist. Every difficulty has an opportunity but it doesn’t mean difficulty won’t be part of the journey toward success. The difference between an obstacle and an opportunity may have more to do with our attitude toward it. For some, the first sign of difficulty means the opportunity is over or never really existed in the first place. In his effort to develop his beacon light, Thomas Edison made between 1,000 – 10,000 attempts that went nowhere. His response to the repeated failures? “I have not failed, I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”
A Dead-End May Simply Be an Opportunity for a Miracle
The Bible tells of one leader who led his people into a dead-end situation only to experience a great miracle. In their escape from Egypt, Moses found himself and his people trapped against the Red Sea, a body of water with an average depth of 1,600 feet. With an angry army approaching from one side and approximately 10 miles of water on the other, all seemed lost. While the people grumbled, complained and lost all hope, Moses remained ever confident. According to the Exodus story, God opened a path through the water and Moses successfully led his people to the other side. A dead end does not mean permanent defeat. It may mean it’s time for a dissection of your direction. Take your time. Don’t panic. Look around and you may find a path you didn’t know existed.
Napoleon Hill said, “Opportunity often comes in the form of misfortune or temporary defeat.”
No Matter the Path in Life, Enjoy the Journey
It’s easy to get into the mode of simply going forward with our head down, racing to reach the destination, achieve the goal or accomplish the task. All which are very important and in many cases, what we get paid to do. However, we’ve all heard others say, it’s not the destination but the journey that brings the most joy. It’s along the way that we develop friendships, get and provide encouragement, gather information, expand our knowledge, grow as individuals, and gain new insights.
Author Ursula Le Guin may have said it best, “It’s good to have an end to journey toward, but it’s the journey that matters in the end.”