Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the diff

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

This week’s Mayor’s Message is quite different from those that I have written in the past, but hopefully, just as meaningful to our readers. When I retired from Oak Lawn Community High School, after a 35-year career as an educator and administrator, I was asked to respond to a number of questions whose answers would be compiled into a retirement booklet for my future reading. One question stood out as most meaningful to me, asking what poem best reflected my choices in life. I immediately answered, “The Road Not Taken,” by Robert Frost. Through high school and into college, I had no clear direction until my college junior year when I decided to enter into the field of secondary education. While I had toyed around with the thought of becoming an accountant, a lawyer or a psychologist, I chose the field of education, and as the poem reads, “And that has made all the difference.”

This week, I would like each of you who read my messages, to read this poem and to exact some meaning from it. Does it speak to your life, and how and why you have arrived at your current point in life’s journey? If you can, find some time, and send me an email at jmarchese@darienil.gov to let me know your response. Thanks again for being a devoted reader of my weekly messages; I look forward to hearing from you.