Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
Robert Frost, The road not taken
Sitting by the window of my hut looking at the snow I reflect on Robert Frost’s poem: The road not taken, and wonder how we managed to diverge from the highway leading humanity into the abyss.
We had the wars of the 2030s but even when we feared the madmen preparing to send us into nuclear Armageddon, or a climate crisis making temperatures soar, sea-levels rising and new epidemics spreading like wildfire, the worst of the worst never happened.
We are fewer now, but fortunately we had the archivists and librarians saving the knowledge we once had. We know where we failed and we continue to learn.
Soon my pupils will come, the young ones who listen more than they talk. The curious ones who ask good questions without giving answers no one is interested in.
I know my remaining time is brief, but the future is brighter than ever.
This is a short story written with inspiration from this post at LinkedIn. Think about it and if you want to post a link to your narrative in the comment below.
Also linking up to dVerse Open Link hosted by Punam.
March 25, 2025
Björn Rudbergs writings 
I really like this, Bjorn. It is very positive.
At the end yes…. but we will have 25 years that are terrible before it settles.
Well, yes, that is true, but it is still hopeful.
Good to read about the future which gives hope
Indeed…
Bjorn have you seen this? https://archive.org/
I’ve heard “the aged librarian” of the place on national public radio and he recently talked about how many sites the new regime is taking down — but thankfully they have them archived.
Yes I have heard about that…. we need the archivists and librarians more and more.
Björn, I love how you have imbued hope and positivity in this bleak scenario. I also love that the pupils listen more than they talk and ask curious questions.
This is what we need for a new humanity…
Absolutely.
We need that kind of hope, Björn: the archivists and librarians saving the knowledge and pupils who listen and ask good questions – I remember them, and my grandson has become one of them even at the age of seven.
Unfortunately that was not the sort of story that I wanted to read this evening.😧😕
Your words remind me how much I have been living in a self-protection blanket lately, avoiding the relentless news stories. They also remind me of the wisdom of individual kindnesses and the gentility of the best sort of age-youth encounter. May it be so. Please keep writing (and archiving).
Wow, a sneak preview into the future and it looks like there will be terrible times ahead. We do need those who will document the journey for the remaining survivors. sigh
We are fewer now, but fortunately we had the archivists and librarians saving the knowledge we once had.
A very thought provoking story, Bjorn. Hopefully the strong will survive in the future to learn from past mistakes!
hi bjorn … i visited the link you provided, and it sounds almost like “written time capsules”– very cool! and i like the positivity in your piece.
As an American citizen who is horrified and dismayed by the current administration’s actions, I especially appreciate your hopeful vision of the future.
It will be a terrible road to peace and relearning, through the few elders left…..real pause for thought…and I like the inclsion of the librarian….
A needed dollop of hope here for present extinguishings ahead of those wars of the ’30s to come. I remember vividly a sci-fi novel from the ’80s by Larry Niven, “Lucifer’s Hammer,” where a meteorite smashes civlization to bits. Just on the cusp of that a man stuff books into plastic baggies and throws them into a septic tank for safe storage. Archivists pay heed.
The last line really takes a bite out of you.
I heard that the big publishers have been after the internet archive, what a shame to be more interested in profit than in sharing knowledge!
I like that there is hope at the end. I hope we will not experience the part before.
I think there are a lot of people trying to preserve records right now because the administration here is intent on erasing and destroying them. Librarians and archivists are heroes.
My favorite poem! I’m pleased you see a future full of hope.
All of humanity, including our children must begin to listen more than we talk and, most importantly, ask curious questions. Your poem is quite thought-provoking Bjorn.