The Road Not Taken

It’s my custom to share periodic notes with Calvary families that I like to call “Fireside Chats,” named after the evening radio addresses that Franklin D. Roosevelt shared with the American people in the 1930s and 40s. 

My goal is to make these notes conversational and story-driven, to help us stay connected as a community — to each other and to the vision that unites us.

– Cheryl Ward, Head of School

Mr. Ward and I went hiking at Nordhouse Dunes Wilderness Area recently. It was one of those days when the Lake Michigan landscape created a beautiful vista that reminded me why we chose “sky, water, and dune” as our new school colors.

As we wound through woods and sand, we tried to follow the path on the map, but there were so many intriguing side paths that we ended up forging our own way through the wilderness.

It was pretty delightful.

And while we thought originally we had wanted the main path on the map, we’re pretty glad that we took a different, lesser known way. We found some good camping spots and discovered a gorgeous view from the top of the dune.

Robert Frost wrote a famous poem about this exact experience. We read it every year in Class Five. And I think the poem is a great metaphor for our school’s path — The Calvary Path, if you will.

We have all come to various crossroads in our lives. 

We are faced with a decision, and we have to try to figure out what we are supposed to do. Which path seems the best? Can I look ahead to guess how it might work out? What type of path do I want to be on, anyway?

Robert Frost challenges our decision making process. He encourages us to make an unconventional decision. His traveler decides to go — not with the prettiest path, or the easiest path, or the smoothest path — but the least traveled path.

Each person at Calvary Schools is on the “Calvary Path.” This means, by nature, an unconventional one because Calvary is taking a road less traveled. 

There are lots of paths in education. The normal road for schools is well-known and well-worn in the public, private, and Christian school sectors. 

But you chose Calvary, the road less traveled.

After all, Calvary is a unique school. We are a Christian, Charlotte Mason, Ambleside school. It comes with incredible beauty and also some challenges. But it’s worth it. 

Because we are playing the long game, which is exactly what Robert Frost is recommending in his poem. Remember, our processes and subjects are designed for the long term — we focus on slow growth, critical thinking, and character formation.

Frost understood that unusual paths can be foundational. He considers himself, later in life, sighing deeply and telling people that there was a time in his life when he had to choose between two paths and that his decision to choose the less traveled path has made all of the difference in his life.

It is my hope and prayer that each of us will one day say, “I chose the Calvary path, and it has made all of the difference.”