Two Wolves

Native Cherokee Tale

A native American grandfather was talking to his grandson about how he felt.

He said "I feel as if I have two wolves fighting in my heart. One wolf is the vengeful, angry, violent one. The other wolf is the loving, compassionate one."

The grandson, with his head bowed, thought about it for a long while. Finally, lifing his head and looking deep into his grandfather's eyes with concern, he slowly asked, "Which wolf will win the fight in your heart, grandfather?

The grandfather answered: "The one I feed."

I have some friends on Facebook I really enjoy and value. True I haven't seen them in a while (does 45 years constitute "a while"?) and don't know them very well at this point, but we've been following each other - as Facebook Folk are wont to do, and many of the things they post are witty and entertaining.

Recently the "dark side" of life has been coming up - I know that people have their own opinions, and many of those opinions are based on a lack of knowledge, rather than a particularly well-informed slant on things. I'm referring to the many derogatory remarks about Islam, and Gay Marriage.

The remarks offend me to some degree, although I am not (in any way shape or form) a Muslim, nor do I (at least at this time) wish to marry another man (mostly because all the really cute ones are taken - sigh...)I'm not really the marrying type for either gender. Too selfish. I digress.

I know, intellectually, that my response to those remarks is triggered by a complex internal set of filters - and the more upset I get about it, the more those triggers are hitting close to something about myself I don't want to accept or acknowledge. I know this.

I still feel bothered...and I guess it's because I'm attached to the thought of my friends being intelligent, urbane, creative, educated people (we all grew up in a very affluent suburb of New York, and went to great schools) who know better than to make blanket statements about entire faith traditions, or get on the bandwagon against a cause that is long overdue - and effects many of our mutual friends.

I guess I'm bothered by thinking that I might be friends with, and genuinely like, people I think are bigoted or hateful - or the worst of all - ignorant. After all, my only life goal is to be a "Conscious Person".

I think the lesson available to me is summed up in the little story of the two wolves. Isn't real acceptance about making your point, but then not getting caught in the drama of insisting that you have to be right - (or even making it a matter of "right or wrong") and just listening to where people are at - then, if asked, trying to help them identify the painful parts of their personal maps which may lead them to "harden their hearts" to what is different, or "other" to them? I think real acceptance, and it's derivative "Consciousness" is just that.

Like Werner Erhard's definition of love - "Allowing other people the space to be who they are, and the space to be who they're not." That's the wolf I want to feed today.