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Together We Will Endure

Feed the Wolf

Posted on January 03, 2016

I have never been one for new years' resolutions. In fact, I have tended to scoff at the proposition of resolutions because I have seldom seen them followed through with in others lives. It’s very challenging to make a significant difference in actions unless there is a cognitive or value change that undergirds the difference you are seeking. Change in our lives comes when we are truly willing to be disciplined and put in the hard work. Dūrātus was never intended to be a community of empty new years’ resolutions. Dūrātus was always intended to be a community of people seeking to challenge and encourage each other toward hard work, discipline, and risking to be better! This idea reminds me of a story I recently heard:

One evening an old Cherokee Indian 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.’

In life, the two wolves that each of us live with, are constantly fighting for supremacy.  The things we do, the words we say, the thoughts on which we dwell are always feeding one of them.  

Everyday we have the choice of which wolf we will feed in our life. 

The gym is a microcosm for all of life.  If as athletes we feed our feelings of inferiority...if we speak words of complacency to ourselves…if we listen to the voice that tells us to quit…then our lives outside of the gym will mirror these things.  

In the same way, if we act out of discipline…if we push through adversity…if we are relentless in our pursuits…if we are steadfast in our approach…and if we live with honor…then we will be in a place to experience and lead others toward change.  

Above and beyond the values of Dūrātus that we often talk about - the idea of “Feeding the wolf” will be a theme that helps to shape how we think and speak this coming year.  My hope in this for all of us is that we are community of people that reminds and challenges each other that we always need to be feeding the right wolf!