“Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.”
Robert Frost

Mary Lee posed our intriguing Inklings challenge this month. She invited us to consider visual frameworks from this site and then to respond to one that resonated with us. My first draft from early in September was off-the-cuff, but heartfelt.

August arrives
the bell rings
We begin

©Molly Hogan

That felt a bit flippant though, and I wanted to dig in a bit more. In my own life I’ve recently been coming back again and again to the idea of paths. I’ve been noticing how often I take photos of paths–in the woods, along a river, on the beach, etc. Something about a path clearly intrigues me, so I searched the visual framework site and found the image below.

I’m not sure the image resonates with me so much here as the word does, so I kind of came at this all backward. Thinking of paths made me think of choices and reminded me of Frost’s poem, which I quoted above. His poem represents more of the crossroads and initial choice, but my thoughts and images are more centered around walking along a certain path that’s already been chosen. At any rate, here’s the end result of all these mental peregrinations. It feels unfinished and still needs a strong title (shocker!) but it’s what was there when I came up for air and realized it was Friday already.

I’m not so sure about Robert Frost
and his path less traveled
In truth
I feel a bit defensive
as I step along
the well-trod path before me
stopping to enjoy the view
taking some side trips and
navigating as best as I can

There’s much to be said
for blazing a new path
and I’d never be so bold
as to challenge Frost
but still…
Isn’t there value
in traveling a well-worn path?
In noticing
and nourishing
the wonder
nascent
within the known?

©Molly Hogan

If you’re interested in seeing what the other Inklings did with this challenge, visit the links below:

Heidi Mordhorst
Catherine Flynn
Margaret Simon
Linda Mitchell
Mary Lee Hahn

This week’s Poetry Friday Roundup is hosted by Matt Forrest Esenwine at his blog, Radio, Rhythm & Rhyme. He’s sharing all sorts of great news, especially the release of his newest book. Make sure to check it out!