Intertribal Life Newspaper -

The wolf pack raced through the forest. Tala was the largest and most fierce of the wolves. He leaped at a doe that jumped over a ravine and narrowly escaped Tala’s sharp fangs. The doe scrambled towards the safety of the deer herd and Tala and the other wolves began to surround the deer.

Suddenly, Dyani a huge buck with sixteen points on his antlers came forward and shook his mighty rack at Tala. “Leave my herd alone, go chase rabbits and other game. If you attack us, I will kill many of you with my sharp antlers,” the big buck warned.

Tala was no coward, but he was no fool. He did not underestimate the sharp antlers or the pointed hooves of the deer. The deer could jump high and farther than the wolves; they were not easy prey. It was true, there was plenty of other game to eat.

“I give you my word that through the summer we will not hunt you, you will be safe until the first snow falls,” Tala promised.

And with that, the wolf pack faded into the forest.

Dyani and the herd of deer lived peacefully in the valley. They ate the lush green grass and drank the cool water and spent their days sleeping in the sun and they grew fat and lazy.

By the end of summer the bears needed food so they could live off their fat during their winter hibernation. They found the herd of deer and attacked. When the deer tried to escape they discovered they were too fat to run, their muscles were no longer strong and they could no longer leap high into the air. Soon many of the deer had been eaten by bears.

The cougars also heard about the sleek, fat lazy deer and they attacked the herd and cougars also caught many of the deer that could not run fast enough to escape.

Then the snow began to fall and Tala and his wolf pack returned to the valley.

Dyani shook his huge antlers at Tala but now his own antlers were too heavy for him.

“You thought I was your enemy,” Tala said, “But you were wrong. When we hunted and chased you, we made you strong. You ran fast, you leaped higher, you were careful, alert to danger and always watchful. When we stopped chasing you, you became careless, fat, lazy, weak and you became easy prey to all the animals, the bear, the cougar and the wolves. You were your own worst enemy. It is true that you fed us, but we kept you strong. Outwitting us kept you clever and we made you run faster and leap higher. You needed us. We kept you at your best.”

“What you say is true,” the old buck said. “We need you to keep us strong.”

Tala respected Dyani for admitting he was wrong.

“We will not attack today. I will give you a head start of one day to travel to the high country but our truce ends tomorrow at sunset,” Tala promised.

The old buck shook his mighty rack that didn’t feel so heavy now.

“You are the wisest of all animals,” Dyani said and took his herd and leaped away into the hills.

A life that is too easy makes us weak and makes us easy prey to predators of all kinds. We need goals, we need work to do, people to serve, hardships to overcome, and we need a reason to live. We need to believe in something bigger than ourselves.

Maybe we need something snapping at our heels to make us run faster, try harder, leap higher.

Many famous people became famous because they were running from poverty, running from unhappiness, running from a sad life, or running from abuse. The people who were once the weakest, smallest kids in school often become the strongest athletes.

Children who were told they were stupid and had no talent often become great writers and artists or scientists.

Sometimes the negative, critical people or events in our lives can be like wolves that chase us and make us stronger, and make us reach higher, try harder to become all we were created to be.

Crying Wind is the author of Crying Wind and

My Searching Heart, When the Stars Danced, and Thunder in Our Hearts, Lightning in Our Veins. All her books are available from Indian Life.