The guest blog this week is a Cherokee legend recently shared by Camp Weequahic.

There is a wonderful story about developing character in a young person we recently heard and wanted to pass along to our community.  This will be an addition to our campfire time for summers to come!

The Story of the Two Wolves

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.  He said, «My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all. One is Evil –  It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.  The other is Good –  It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.»

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: «Which wolf wins?»

The old Cherokee simply replied, «The one you feed.»

Simple, isn’t it? However, just because building good character is as simple as feeding the right wolf inside us, the culture around us doesn’t make it easy. Our young people need to know that they have a choice in building character and must make decisions on a daily and hourly basis about which wolf to feed.  The Weequahic Way serves to remind our campers and staff members that they do have a choice and guidelines for making ones that will help build people of Good Character.

Cole Kelly
Director, Camp Weequahic

*This blog originally appeared on the Camp Weequahic website on February, 9, 2012 and can be viewed here: http://www.weequahic.com/blog/the-story-of-the-two-wolves.