One evening a Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.
He said, “My son, the battle is between 2 wolves inside of 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 Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.”
— Author Unknown

This is the time of year when it would behoove all of us to press the “Pause” button and take some time to contemplate how we treat others — which is, in essence — a direct reflection of who we really are.

I have a bee in my bonnet.  And it’s buzzing around one word: Courtesy. Or lack thereof. A false sense of entitlement, perhaps.

Some examples:

• he or she who texts while driving, completely disregarding the pedestrian crossing the street (who – fyi – has the right of way)
• he or she who chats on the cell phone while driving (same scenario as above)
• he or she who does not reply to an important email or telephone call
• he or she who is consistently late for meetings, appointments, or events
• he or she who eagerly accepts the fruit of one’s labor and, not only takes it for granted, but also refuses to honor their word
• he or she who honks their car horn incessantly (this is really, really, annoying!!!)
• he or she who wastes food (when others are starving)
• he or she who looks right through you – not at you
• he or she who listens, but does not really hear
• he or she who judges others, making assumptions (because they are, after all, assumptions) that are usually erroneous

The list goes on and on….

So, here’s a shout out to all of us in this, the season of light, love and thanks:  feed the Good wolf.

Image via oneheartbeatdrums.com.