At a recent staff professional
learning meeting on ‘restorative practice’ within our ‘positive behaviour for
learning’ focus, the following Cherokee Indian story was shared. It has had a
big impact on me as I see these two wolves within me. In fact, I see these two
wolves in all of us.
The story
goes like this:
One day a young Cherokee Indian boy was complaining
to his grandfather that another boy who was a friend had betrayed him and was
now spending more time with another friend. The boy was hurt and was very sad.
The
wise old Cherokee Indian said to the boy, “A fight is going on inside all of
us. It is a
terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil – full of anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance,
self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and
ego.”
He
continued, “The other is good – he is full of joy, peace, love, hope, serenity,
humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and
faith. The same fight is going on inside you – and inside every other person,
too.”
The
grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which
wolf will win?”
The
old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.”
Isn’t it so
true! The problem is we can never permanently get rid of the angry wolf inside
us. Both wolves will always be there waiting. We can’t be sure no matter how
hard we try to rid ourselves of the negative wolf. Life continually will take
us on a journey of sadness, hurt, worry and joy.
When things
are going badly for us it is so easy to blame others or a set of circumstances
outside of our control. This can sometimes turn us inward and shut others out
of our life, be defensive, uncommunicative and downright stubborn blaming the
world for our troubles.
The trouble
is this just feeds the angry and bitter wolf and stalls any personal progress
ahead. It becomes a self-fulfilling poisonous cycle feeding the evil wolf more and
more.
In many ways
it is easier to flounder, feel sorry for ourselves and sulk. The hard part is
to try and feed the compassionate wolf within and if you are being hurt or
hindered by someone, try and walk in their shoes, ask to meet them to try and
resolve issues with an open mind, hear their story and confront their truth
alongside your truth. This takes guts, energy and compassion.
The reality
of life is both wolves live within and it is human nature for anger to rise
within us, particularly when our core values are put to the test. It needs
strength and courage to stand up for what is right, even if that means
confronting the situation and being clear about what your values are and what
you can and can’t accept.
However for
our own well-being and to have peace in our heart we need to strive to feed our
humble, generous and good wolf because eventually anger and hurt will take
everything worthwhile from us.
I think this
Cherokee story is powerful and we should teach our children to always try to
feed the compassionate wolf inside us but also be prepared to stand up for what
is right using the principles of ‘justice’ and ‘fairness’.
Imagine if
the world lived this way! War might be a thing of the past.
Picture
ref: https://nz.pinterest.com/explore/wolves-fighting/
