On January 20, 2011, 13 year old Walter Eikrem got off his school bus and began walking to his nearby Rakkestdad home.
Before he was able to reach the safety of his house he found himself confronted by 4 adult wolves.
Although terrified, he remembered his mother told him never to run from wolves because they would give chase. So he fought with the only weapon he had.
Walter had been listening to the song “Overcome” by Creed, an American rock band, on his mobile phone. He pulled the headphones out of the phone and cranked the volume on full pointing the phone speakers toward the wolves. The boy reported the wolves simply turned around and trotted away. Perhaps they didn’t care for the music.
Of course, while Creed has received a good deal of publicity for frightening away the Norway wolves, the fact that young Walter was yelling at the wolves and waving his arms may have discouraged them as much as the music.
While Creed has been characterized as a Christian rock band, the song “Overcome” has no reference in it to God, Jesus or being saved, so apparently no one can claim that Creed’s music performed a divine miracle.
The boy’s mother, who gave him sound advice about not running from wolves, stated she knew there were wolves in the area since she had seen three the night before when she was putting the family horses in their stalls.
She had intended to pick Walter up at his bus stop, but had gone shopping and lost track of time. Fortunately, she didn’t lose anything else that day. The excellent advice she gave her son evidently stood him in good stead.
Wolves are canine predators that run in packs and usually avoid contact with humans, but encroachment by humans into their habitat has resulted in more encounters between wolves and people. In most cases wolves will not attack people who behave aggressively toward them preferring not to engage in confrontation. Running away or showing fear can incite the animals to attack, especially if they are hungry.
It’s lucky that Walter was armed with both good advice and Creed when he met the Norwegian wolves. Whether it was his aggressive behavior or a dislike of Creed’s music that drove the wolves away may never be known. While Creed has received a good bit of publicity for their role in saving Walter’s life, the ability to drive away canines with sensitive ears may not be much of an endorsement of their musical talent.
