The Road Not Taken

Robert Frost, "The Road Not Taken" (1915)

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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The first time i read this poem was when i was in form 4 (16 years old), in my English class. This poem really appeal to me, for it keeps reminding me: we live only once, no turning back; The road we have taken, will be the road we're going to continue, till the end of our lives.

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A junior of mine just got his STPM results, he scored 4.0. He has been thinking of coming to Russia to study medicine, so he asked for my ideas and advice....I told him to think thrice, because i think that it's not about where to study medicine, but how much is he willing to devote himself in medical field.

I have a few friends who went back to Malaysia after studying in Russia for months or years. Maybe they're not used to the culture here, maybe they miss their family too much, maybe they found out that medicine is not their cup of tea....

Yes, i also have friends who wanted to give up medicine because they think they're not interested in it anymore, or more precisely, they think they couldn't handle it.

Obviously there're times that we want to give up. Obviously medicine is not an easy stuff, and obviously, nothing is easy; we need to make an effort and try our very best to achieve what we want....

Anyway, what i want to relate my thoughts with this poem is not about we should choose the road less taken like the Robert Frost, but rather, we shouldn't regret with our decisions.

The road not taken, might be the road fulled of weeds, rubbish, poisonous mushrooms, etc...If we have taken this road, instead of wasting time wondering why we chose this path, we could have used the time to clean up the road, make it a better one for the future passers-by; and if we have chosen a road with beautiful sceneries along it, sit back and relax, and enjoy it.