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 travelled by,
And that has made all the difference.
The Road not Taken, by Robert Frost
Today’s Gospel offers an image about making difficult and challenging decisions. As we grow into life, we can find ourselves disagreeing with friends and family. It can be a difficult place for all concerned. In his poem, Frost speaks of choosing a difficult path that made the difference.
Through this poem, I can hear the parents of many gifted people, saying you will never make a living from playing music, or playing sport or taking that job or … I might have even found myself saying those words!
Jesus offers us a view of life that is different. By choosing God (Abba), we choose life as ‘choosing God is choosing the fullness of life’.At our deepest core, God invites us to be who we really are. This view of life can be difficult for people to see and experience. However, Jesus offers us a pathway through discipleship. It is in Christian discipleship (somebody who engages in learning about God) that ‘we choose God and life’.
Pope Francis encourages all to be in discernment in our discipleship and in our lives through prayer. It is ‘in’ this time of prayer that we can find the courage to choose God and choose life.
Image by Jerzy Górecki from Pixabay
Ronan Barry
