Two Wolves Poem by Rahul Ram

Two wolves

There are two wolves in me
In all of us
A Cherokee story
A story of the battle
Between two wolves
A wolf that loves
And A wolf that hates
'Which wolf will win? '
'The one you feed.'

Back to the me then.
There are two wolves in me.
And I fed love, to both.
For it would be cruel,
To let one starve.

I saw a friend
on a different light
and the wolf
Within me howled
And I felt love
Not unusual now, or was it?

Her dismay caused me pain
And the wolf within me growled
And I felt hate.
I tried, oh I tried,
But how naïve of me
To think I can tame the
Wolves within me.

Her dismay caused me pain
And the wolf within me
Bit her, with words
Sharper than fangs.
I drew blood, and
She ran, not before
Throwing a stone
Of silence, at me.

Heh, I tried to tame the wolf
Of hate. I tried and I failed.
She did it, all but simply
With silence.
In her flight, in her plight
She tamed what was mine,
Not my heart, No,
but my wolf of hate.
One final parting gift.

_________________________


For those wondering who Cherokee are, they are a Native American tribe. Two wolves is a Cherokee legend.
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.'