Opinion: On ‘The Road Not Taken’ and the life-affirming power of poetry

To the editor: Jill Bialosky’s piece “Can poetry save your life?” was very meaningful to me.

When I first read Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” years ago, I caught myself contemplating my own life and all the roads I’d taken (or not). Like Bialosky, my growing-up years were not easy and I felt so different from everyone else. Frost actually made me grateful for my life.

As a high school English teacher (now retired) I felt that poetry was so important for my students to read, discuss and memorize. “The Road Not Taken” was the favorite poem of so many of my students. Many of my students were from Mexico and had struggles with losing touch with parents and siblings, their friends and culture. I do believe this poem gave them a sense of worth, pride and hope.

My hope as I read Bialosky’s piece was that my former students also read it. I hope they still have “The Road Not Taken” fully memorized.

Sue Snyder, Laguna Woods

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To the editor: Unlike any other kind of reading, poetry lies firmly in the present, stopping the unrelenting urge to be productive, turn the page briskly, just get on with it and finish.

A poet relishes the details and helps us slow down to relish them too. It’s kind of like spending time with a toddler, who forces you into the present as she examines a butterfly for the very first time.

Eileen Flaxman, Los Angeles

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To the editor: Oh, how I wish I was still teaching so I could bring this beautiful essay to my students. Thank you, Jill Bialosky, for sharing your love of poetry, but for also sharing the emotional solitude that comes from losing a parent as a child.

I wish I had found Robert Frost or any other poet to ease the pain of losing my father at an early age.

Thanks also goes to her teacher Miss Hudson, who didn’t just read the poetry to her class; she demonstrated her love of words and their magic. She should be so proud.

Judith Braun, Woodland Hills

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