In Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken,” a traveler stands at a fork in the woods. The traveler chooses the path “less traveled by” and later says it “made all the difference.” While I once saw it as a high school analogy about life’s choices, I now see as a reminder that every step—small or large—shapes not only who we...

In high school, the distinction between right and wrong—more or less—appeared clear. Catholic high school made it unambiguously clear. Thanks to the good brothers of Salesian, you either learned the right path quickly or you were firmly corrected (accent on firmly.) Which brings me to a long-remembered poem whose last lines are frequently quoted. Two roads diverged in a yellow...

“Man is free at the instant he wants to be.” – Voltaire Looking up at the nation’s Capitol, two small children, a boy and girl, were standing at the bottom of the steps looking up, awed by the size and brilliance of the white building. Each began climbing the 365 steps to reach the top. When one had trouble, the...