"The Road Not Taken"

We talked about "The Road Not Taken" a lot already, so I won't spend too much time on it, but I do really find it interesting how it's been misinterpreted. That's what you get for quoting out of context. It's the same reason I always start watching a TV show from the first season, or why I always finish a book once I've started it. You can't possibly get a feel for any work of art without looking at the whole thing.

Anyway, the last three lines of this poem were quoted on one of my high school planners (not at graduation, thank god). Trying to inspire teenagers with lines that are preceded by "I shall be telling this with a sigh..." - yeah, that sounds like my high school. Still, I barely glanced at it, having seen it countless times before, and accepted it. 

But the first time I read it all the way through (about a year ago), I immediately understood, and immediately lost all hope. This is what I wrote that day:

There's so many books I'll never read.


I've gotten into the habit of making short to-do lists before bed, for the following day. I feel anxious if I don't. It's gotten to the point where I even have to include things like "Wake up" or "Eat" - as if I could forget to eat - to feel calm and in control. I used to only do this for especially busy days, to keep from feeling overwhelmed. Now I do it every night before bed, even for the [freest] of days.
If I can't get through these simple lists every day, how will I ever allow myself to move past the realm of routine and learn something new, take risks, create?
This terrifies me.


Even the most efficient and ambitious among us never get around to doing all they want to do. It's impossible.
Isn't it?
I couldn't possibly read all the books I want to read, learn all the languages I want to learn, travel to all the countries I want to see.


I want to learn all the secrets of yoga. Real yoga. Not "trendy" American yoga. I want to wear dresses every day. I want a masseuse. I want to explore creative writing because it excites me and scares me. I want to play the violin again, and while I'm at it, the guitar and piano, too. I want to transform my diet and find out what's possible in a world without donuts, without processed foods, without MSG. (...)


Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler...


Every decision I make (or don't make) leads me in one direction and not the other.
I want them all.
I guess that's why Economics and I do not understand each other. I am campaigning to abolish opportunity cost, with all its formulas and logic.

If that's how I felt after reading it one time, how could anyone possibly interpret it as inspiring? If anything, it makes me feel defeated, helpless, stressed about every decision I'll ever have to make for the rest of my life. 
But I still like it. It frustrates me, but it articulates a feeling I've always had, that most people have.