THE PATH WELL TRAVELLED - POTD

POTD 23 Mar 2024 THE PATH WELL TRAVELLED. Two paths diverged, and I was thrown by doubts I had never known To my left, thickly overgrown, was a path to dismal dimness prone. To my right, a lovely sight-fragrant flora flamed in light Forms so graceful, beauty rare, a wonderous vision beyond compare. Both seduced with equal right, torn was I between dark and light. Resisting limits of time and sight, a liminal border of cosmic might. Hesitancy rapt with fear and doubt, the pondering heart beat aloud. Tempting was the path so grand, but instinct cautioned of a treacherous hand. A feathery touch, a breeze stirred, and in its sigh, a voice I heard. Was it Hecate who whispered? "Take heed. Beware, for each path leads to a different lair." Crystal clarity knew what I must do, and with a heart filled with valour true, Joyously, I strode wild and free down the well-trodden path ahead of me. The leaves, like frisking lovers, played as I embarked my chosen way. Future paths ~ So many dreams ~ Each a thread in life's grand scheme. Though true discovery lay in paths, I'd roam ~ The one well travelled always led back Home. By Maria Williams © Greeks worshipped Hecate as a guardian and gatekeeper who could ward off evil forces. She is often represented carrying a torch and a key and standing on the liminal border between one place and another. She bears three heads and always has a dog by her side. Inspired by Robert Frost's 'The Road Not Taken', I chose to write an alternative version. 'The Road Not Taken' is one of Robert Frost's most famous poems. It's natural and understandable that many readers take the poem to be Frost's statement of individualism as a poet: he will take 'the road less travelled'. The metaphor of the road is one that immediately evokes a journey, not just of the local or day-to-day kind, but of the life-defining sort: life as a journey, with many roads which we must travel along, and with many alternative paths which we must choose between. POTD 23 March 2024