The Road Less Traveled

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;	5
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,	10
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.	15
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 pretty much wrote a poem about my life at this point. I feel very much in the same position as this poem describes. My life is at a junction of two paths and what path I choose, as he points out, "has made all the difference."

I have a good life. I think a lot, I work hard, but I believe the research I do at grad school can make a difference. I have some good friends and I love where I am with my church, how it is helping shape me, and how there are good men for me to look up to and learn from. I am very comfortable.

Perhaps that is the problem. I have challenges, but no adventure in my life. Each day feels the same. The joke is that we're the lab where every day is Monday... and honestly, my heart is getting weary from it.

The Marines are calling me more strongly every day, or at least, that's how it feels. While I know the reality is not the same as the dream (I mean, we can't fast-rope out of helicopters and save the world EVERY day...), I also know it is an avenue where hard work pays off and my potential could be realized. I enjoy the importance of physical fitness, the desire for constant improvement in pursuit of perfection, and the brotherhood that develops. Even the core values speak to my soul: Honor, Courage, Commitment. The catch is, to get there is an uphill, unpleasant and even painful series of challenges and trials. I went through boot camp once and didn't like it... I really don't relish the thought of doing it again to become an officer.

This is one of those decisions I don't have to make today, so I'll be praying and thinking on it. I'm already figuring out how to best collect information to see if this is really where I am meant to go and if so, when. I like to think I could get my Ph D, then become an officer, but age limitations prohibit this. Conversely, I could become an officer, serve my term, and come back as a 35 year old grad student, starting at square one. I hope my life will have progressed to a point that precludes that by then.

So, I have only one life to live, one time to choose, and one road to travel. While now is not the moment I must decide, there is only so long I can ponder and reflect before the choice will ultimately be made for me. And I know, don't ask me how, but somehow I know... that choice will make all the difference.