Below is a story I am reposting from Natalie's blog. It really resonates with me an my feelings about myself and my interations with others and i wanted to share it with my friends that may not know Natalie. The reason why this is important to me at this time in part due to my job. I spend the majority of my day 5 days a week with people who say things like "I hate fat people" and think that is ok. Combating this energy in combination with other, by themselves, trival unpleasentries is causing me to be a little more than cynical. That is something i need to take control of.

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.'

The idea, which i think is extremely American, that we have the power to craft our dreams into physical reality is at the root of my personal philosophy. (The photo is of a woman who has worked (out) to manifest fer dream. Her moto is Dedicated, Determined, Disiplined. She is a 71 year old personal trainer right here in good ol' Baltimore)

That is something that every aspect of my life relates back too. I am a person who people thought would never graduated high school, who may not be capable of living independantly. I have surived being an orphan, a barrage of foster care homes, running the streets as a child without being enrolled in school amongst other Oprah Book Club type senarios. If the concepts of fate and destiny played a part in my life i would certainly be living the adult counterpart to my childhood expirences.

I survived by using the tools i had (a brilliant and amazingly supportive extended family most importantly) to craft the life I wanted to have instead of believing I was relegated to live in the expiriences of whatever happens to me. This is why art and dance are so attractive to me, they exisit in the imagination until they are manifested by you, creating evidance that proves we are only what we want to be and the power to change is ours.

That sounds really good, except it is so hard! I thought once i got through college, I had won. Success! I made it. However I had only begun learning what is really possible. Now that I have been out of school as long as I was there, I'm left asking myself where are those manifested visions, where is that hope and determination? I am doing what everyone else does. I take care of myself, I have a good time, but that is not what i wanted. I want to create something lasting that lets people know that they CAN. But to do that I have to be open to myself and others continously, i have to work tirelessly and know that there is no finish line. What I didn't know is that the Good Wolf requires A LOT more food then the Bad Wolf and the Bad Wolf is always waiting paitently.