The Wolf
An old Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life. “A fight is going on inside me,” he said to the boy. “It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil – he is 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 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.”
Which wolf do you feed regularly? Which wolf deserves to be fed? Do you listen to your inner voice and think for a moment and living in fear, grief, anger and resentment?
All good questions that require a long time to ponder. It seems so simple though, doesn't it? We need to constantly be feeding the good wolf, don't we? Don't we want to live in positivity and light? Of course we do... I think...
The universe is filled with light energy and dark energy. The same universe is a grand scale of each one of us. Beings of light, filled with stardust and wonder. Vast and for the most part, unexplored. The evil wolf may be filled with the dark energy and obviously, the good wolf with the light. But without darkness, there can be no light. Without light, there can be no dark. And we know that like light, darkness is needed. Darkness allows our physical bodies to rest and reset. To prepare for the coming day. To heal wounds, hurt and cure sickness. To allow the moon and stars to shine and feed our sense of wonder and how truly small we all are in the grand scheme of this universe.
"But Mike, you are saying that evil is good?"
In a way, yes. Darkness can be good. Evil, not so much. Dark energy, like light energy, has its uses. It can motivate us and help us deal with the days where our happiness seems to be off the charts.
"Wait a minute, Mike. Now you are just plain wrong. How can you ever be too happy?"
Simple. There is a saying which states, "Never reply when you are angry. Never make a promise when you are happy. Never make a decision when you are sad." Interesting. Do you see in between the lines? I do. It reads "balance".
Balance. What does that have to do with the wolf story? Good and bad, must balance. Yin and Yang. Darkness and Light. Day and Night. Love and Hate. Rain and Sun. Mountain Peaks and Ocean Bottoms.
There must be balance in all we do. I like to alter the story of the Cherokee Grandfather by saying the wolves are dark and light. We must feed them both, to achieve a sense of balance in life. To grow, we must experience both dark and light. Good and bad. We must go through dark nights and radiant days. Sometimes, those journeys must occur alone. We have lessons to learn and emotions to find. We must run with the light wolf through golden alpine meadows and watch as the same wolf turns dark and brooding as winter falls. We offer food to them both. We ask each of them to teach us. To show us a lesson our soul was destined to learn.
As I pen this blog, the dark wolf is eating from my hand currently. I have been surrounded with darkness for a few days. I feel numb. I feel sad. I feel run down and worn out. I am tired. I am in need of wilderness therapy. I need to pat the dark wolf on the head, send it on its way and find light. Find balance. Find peace, solace and tranquility.
"So just be happy!"
It's not that easy. The mind of the depressed is awash in a myriad of emotions unexplainable to most others, especially the folks who live in perpetual happiness. We call and call the light wolf to return to us and lick away our fear, hurt and pain. Only, our calls, go unanswered. We yell into the remote and vast wild hoping to see that wonderful light bounding towards us, yet, we remain in the dark.
Sometimes, we grow to love the dark.
For me, there are days I welcome the dark. I find happiness in seeing that dark wolf running to me. Other days though, when the canines sink too far into my spirit and balance cannot happen, I loathe the same wolf. I call and call to the light wolf, yet it remains at bay.
It is clear to me that while the Cherokee Grandfather was speaking in terms of good and evil, I believe there is the other side to the story; dark and light. This is a story for you, my reader, to ponder yourself. Do you seek out one wolf over the other? Would it benefit you to feed them both? Are you afraid of the dark? Do you fear the happiness and comfort of the light?
Why?
Think. Feel. Wonder.
In a time where everything seems upside down and inside out, allow your mind to question things you never have considered before. If you enjoyed this read, great. If you think it's complete gibberish, also great. Hopefully though, you asked yourself a few questions during this and allowed your open mind to wonder, if even for a second. Stay well, find the balance in the dark and light.
“Leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but pictures, kill nothing but time.”
Namaste, friends.
