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
traveled by
And that has made all the
difference.
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Some days, I feel that I run in a Robert Frost poem. Today was one of those. I ran my usual morning run up Cement Creek Road. Typically, I have a running partner or I see other runners and walkers. Today after two miles, there were no other foot prints except an occasional line of fox prints that would eventually peel off into the forest.
It was what I needed. For
my last run of 2012, I reflected on the year past—personally and as a runner although
those lines are very blurred for me. The
past two years have been a challenge. Our family made it through and is
stronger because of it. Some of the cracks are still evident in my daily life.
Getting through the tough times made me put my head down and get it done…runs,
races, homework, work, making dinner, hockey and soccer practices, to name a
few. I need to lift my head and see the possibilities.
Running and racing (even
the not so good races) was my release and joy. I have decided that is not
enough. I need to lift my head and try to find a new joy or small moment to
make my day complete. This may be as simple as a laugh with a family member,
the sun bouncing of a peak during my morning commute, or helping a student
solve a simple problem.
I will be writing mostly
about running, racing, and coaching. I am passionate about all of them. But as
I mentioned earlier, I am a runner and it blurs into my personal being.