The Road Less Traveled

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.
– Robert Frost, “The Road Not Taken” (1916)

WHAT’S IN A NAME?

When selecting a title for this blog, I was looking for something that would inspire a vision of alternative ways of living, of thinking differently. While my thinking has been, and will continue to be, influenced by a variety of intellectual, political, and spiritual voices, the most common characteristic among them is a basic commitment to growth and change, of exploring alternatives. For me, Robert Frost’s poem, “The Road Not Taken,” serves as a useful metaphor in this regard, encouraging us to embrace the uncertainty of following a new path, both personally and collectively.

Although, if I was being fair to Frost’s poem, I might be apprehensive about following a different path, or rather, committing to any path at all (like the friend he was writing about). So, perhaps we can consider my blog to be a response to “The Road Not Taken,” an affirmation of the potential for change and the importance of commitment to the present moment. We ought to always be mindful of the travels that led us to where we are today, and curious about the journey ahead, but it is only in this moment that we can change ourselves and our world for the better.

At the time I created this blog (November, 2007), I had recently read the book, The Road Less Traveled, by M. Scott Peck (1978), which put words to many of my own thoughts about love and relationships. So I’m sure my experience with Peck’s classic had some influence on my title selection. But for the most part, I wanted visitors to consider the potential of liberating ourselves from pre-conceived notions and assumptions, from social norms and the status quo, as well as from our own ideological allegiances, to foster a space for new, more enlightening ways of living – to take “the road less traveled.” I also hope to remind myself, when necessary, what that means and how important it is.