Recently, I was reading Wayne Dyer’s Inspiration, and I came across a passage that stuck me as particularly interesting. For years, I’ve always said, “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” I’m not sure who first said that, but it is true. Our readiness basically means that we should be open to all possibilities, and we should pay attention for signs.

Several things have occurred in the past couple of weeks with which I feel like I have been making a connection. Last weekend in the Sun Valley Half Marathon, as I was running along the path around mile 8, there sat a fox right beside the path.

Before I saw him, I was feeling a little frustrated because I was struggling with the altitude and having a hard time catching my breath. Unaware of the altitude, I was experiencing some negative self-talk about my fitness level. Then this fox appears – not running along the path – just sitting there watching me pass 3 feet away from him. This fox jolted me back to my senses as I recognized that it was such an extraordinary encounter. I realized at that moment that I was connecting with nature though this wild animal. My race got better at that point, and the last 5 miles of the race were a bit easier than the first 8.

Everything in nature is connected to the same Source, so when nature “speaks to us,” we should listen. Anytime something in nature actually connects with us physically – whether it’s a bird, a pine cone, a leaf, or a fox -  we should pay attention.