Once there was a little girl whose grandfather was a respected member of their community. He settled disagreements fairly, helped those in difficulty in a way that maintained their dignity. He kept peace and harmony among the people and often was able to cure the sick and injured. In a thousand different ways he contributed positively to peoples’ lives, and always did this in a way that, at the same time, supported the community as a whole. The people respected his wisdom, listened to his words and generally followed his advice.
that we heard so many years ago
we cannot recall who told it or
if its source was credited at the time.
With our apologies for those omissions, it goes something like this:
Once there was a little girl whose grandfather was a respected member of their community. He settled disagreements fairly, helped those in difficulty in a way that maintained their dignity. He kept peace and harmony among the people and often was able to cure the sick and injured. In a thousand different ways he contributed positively to peoples’ lives, and always did this in a way that, at the same time, supported the community as a whole. The people respected his wisdom, listened to his words and generally followed his advice.
The little girl knew all this and was curious. She went to her grandfather and asked him “What is it like, being you?”
The old man thought for a few minutes and then he told her “It’s like having two wolves in my head. One snarls and bites. It is angry at peoples’ foolishness and wants to fight with them and drive them away. In addition, it wants everything for itself, the best food, the best den, the best everything. The other wolf is different. It wants to teach about cooperation and it knows that each other wolf has something to offer and needs to be a valued part of the pack. It understands together we are stronger than any one of us is alone. It has compassion and its actions support the welfare of its pack. Always these two wolves are fighting with each other in my head. Always.”
The little girl’s eyes got very large and very round as she considered these things. But she didn’t say anything. Quietly she went away and for a number of days she thought about what her grandfather had said.
After some time had passed, she returned to him. “Grandfather, which wolf wins?” she asked. The old man replied: “The one that I feed is the wolf who wins.”
We don’t have to look far these days to find the snarling wolves. They seem to be everywhere. Be that as it may, a good question to ask ourselves at this time, a good question at any time, might be “Which of those two wolves are we each feeding?"
You may contact Pat at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
© Pat Foley, 2010
Pat Foley attempts to live a green/sustainable life just outside of Cornish, Maine. She is the owner of Earthrest, a retreat center operating on solar power, which offers gathering space for groups and individuals. The underlying focus of Earthrest is on following Gandhi’s advice to be the change we wish to see in the world. You may contact Pat at earthrest@psouth or (207) 625-4179.