Miles to Go

Since I majored in English in college, I had to take a plethora of literature classes. Some of those classes I will never forget, due in part to the writings that we studied but also due in part to the various instructors who taught those classes. I remember a class on the works of Shakespeare ... my professor would come to class dressed in period costumes reflecting whichever play we were studying at the time. I remember a class on Southern literature ... my professor would have us all close our eyes as he read to us from the works of great Southern writers such as Walker Percy or Eudora Welty or Harper Lee. But one of my favorite literature classes focused on the poetry of Robert Frost, and part of the curriculum the professor created was to have us write a paper each week on the Frost poem we had just discussed in class. And my all-time favorite Frost poem is Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening.

Ollie and I left the house early this morning to go for a walk. It is ferociously windy today, and I couldn't help but smile as Ollie's wiener dog ears flapped in the wind. I think he needs some sort of little doggie headband or stocking cap for these terribly windy Kansas mornings ... perhaps I should make a trip to PetSmart to see if such a thing exists. But again, I digress. Though the wind gusts are intense today, the temperature is warm enough that I was quite comfortable in my own stocking cap, gloves and hoodie as we walked. Since I didn't have any time constraints today, Ollie and I walked for a long time ... almost two hours ... and we walked for several miles. And as we walked, the final lines of the Robert Frost poem kept pounding in my mind.

"The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep."

I couldn't help but think about the promises I've made throughout my life, some I've kept and some I haven't. I couldn't help but think about the fact that I rarely promise anything to anyone any longer and about how tentative I am when I do. I couldn't help but think about how often I wonder how many more miles I have to go before I can sleep. I couldn't help but think about how the only place I feel at peace is when I am on my beloved trail that winds through the woods ... the lovely, dark and deep woods. Promises to keep, I thought, I've got no more promises to keep. As tears sprung to my eyes, something in the sky caught my eye ... something in the sky caught my eye and made me stop in my tracks and stare heavenward.

Remember when I said it was ferociously windy here today? I hadn't noticed as Ollie and I were walking because I always look down as I walk, but the sky had filled with dark gray clouds during the time we were on the trail. And those clouds were literally racing across the sky as they were pushed along by the strong winds ... really ... racing across the sky. I stood gazing upward, tears pouring down my cheeks as I marveled at the dramatic way that God had just gotten my attention. I've always thought that one day when the trumpet sounds and Jesus returns ... the clouds will roll across the sky, the sun will split the horizon and Jesus will appear. I stood there looking at those clouds ... looking at those clouds ... looking at those clouds.

"The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep."

Help me keep my eyes on You, Lord ... help me to remember that You alone are God of the woods, God of the skies, God of my heart, God of my miles ... help me keep my eyes on You, Lord.