THE SEVENTH LOG
Willy Whitefeather
Seven men huddled around a camp fire on a
cold and snowy night. Each one held a wooden log, and each one stared at
the dying fire. A wealthy man held on to his log, for he did not want to
put it on the fire, to warm the poor man, across from him. The poor
man also clutched his log tight, for he did not want to warm the rich
man. The preacher held his log tight, for the man across from him was not
of his church. He did not wish for his log to warm him. The priest
kept his log, of wood, for why should he allow it to warm one of a different
faith. The black man sat and watched the campfire begin to smolder, yet
he would not allow his log to warm the white man who sat opposite
him. The white man would not throw his log on the fire to warm the
man across from him, whose skin was so black.
The seventh man is you, my friend, as
you sit and watch the other six men...that are slowly freezing to death.
Not so much from the cold night, but from the cold within their own
hearts. The campfire has almost gone out. What is your
decision? Will you get the fire going, or will you let it go out?
One thing to remember, the Cherokees
are the Keepers of the Sacred Flame, given by the Creator, and carried on the
Trail of Tears, from