‘THE ROAD NOT TAKEN’

                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Looking up at the sky, Riya gazes upon the moon as it struggles to shine through the thick clouds that cover its glow. It is almost midnight and without the all city lights, she can see the stars wink and twinkle at her. Watching the struggling moon at night she is thinking of her past and future ahead filled with mixed emotions. She remembers the lines of the poem ‘ The Road Not Taken ’ by Robert Frost which she had read in her English book in her school days. She can still remember the explanation of the poem that her English teacher taught so efficiently. And remembering these lines, she realizes that her own life is similar to the poet’s life as described in the poem.

                                                                                                                                                         

[Summary: In the poem it has been described that the poet has come to a fork in the road in the woods and is unsure which way to go. He wishes that he could go both ways. Both are equally worn & equally overlaid with un-trodden leaves. He chooses one, telling himself that he will take the other another day. Yet he knows it is unlikely that he will ever have the opportunity to do so. He claims that he took the less travelled road and that has in future recreated the scene with a slight twist.]                                                                                   

Riya thinks like the poet we often face situations in our life where we have to make choices that later on carve our future. She too had once faced such a situation when she completed her high school. She was about to choose her career path and she had to make choices among a lot of courses. The poet in the poem has described the paths faced by him as equally fair. Like the poet, she too knew that all these courses had equal potential just as the paths faced by the poet. Somehow she narrowed her options to few alternatives that were medical or engineering course or some other professional courses which included Veterinary Science.

                                                                                                                                                                    For her the term ‘Veterinary Science’ wasn’t new. She was aware about it since her kindergarten. She still remembers how she became aware of it. Some girl in her class had wished to become a Veterinary doctor when she was asked about her aim. That day after coming from school out of curiosity she had ran home and asked her father what a Veterinary Doctor was. Her father explained to her that a Veterinary doctor is a doctor who treats animals when they are ill. And she has always liked that profession since then. But she had heard from her parents that it was less chosen by students and also they didn’t prefer it as a good career for her. Her parents wished her to take either Medical or Engineering courses like most students did. When she didn’t qualify entrance, her parent’s had even asked her to prepare for Medical entrance for one year. But she denied & preferred to choose Veterinary Science as her career since she had qualified its entrance test and somehow felt that she was destined to join it.

So like the poet when she faced the fork of her life, she feels that she too took a less travelled path like him and kept the Medical career for future in spite of knowing that she can never change her career and return to choose other. She too like the poet was uncertain whether her choice was perfect for her & hoped it to be better.

She has often heard that the college life is the best time in a person’s life. She agrees with it. When she joined the college, it was the first time she was exposed to the outside world away from her parents. She was left to grow up to become adult and to make her own decisions. She became responsible and learnt to understand the importance of maintaining good and healthy relations with seniors, batch mates and friends. No doubt there was fun but during her college life she has faced ocean of challenges. And sometimes like the poet, she too felt like regretting the decision she had once made. She had often hoped to come back and choose the other career, but like the poet she too felt that trying the other choice might be foolish.

                                                       

Four and a half years have already passed and she is on the verge of graduation. Sitting near the window and gazing at the sky she feels that after graduation she may have to struggle to have a better future like the moon is struggling to shine behind the clouds outside her window. Her feelings at this moment are congruent with the poet’s last stanza in the poem. Akin to the poet she too is uncertain whether she will be happy or sad for her choice in future. But still the choice remains important to her as it is to the poet in the poem.

In the last line, the poet wants to remind that the between the two paths in the wood he took the one which was rarely travelled by anyone or may be the poet was the fast to travel that path, but still the poet didn’t lose his hope and became successful and that has made difference in his life. Reminiscing these last lines of the poem, Riya too has decided to make a difference in her life by being confident about her choice & making it a success by her perseverance.