Polar Princess - Coyote Tale

Posted by Jill Salva on 1/28/2007 on Jill Salva's blog

G’day – G’Saturday!

TRAINING – Coyote Tale
6.6 miles of trail running today…..in the freshies. Waking to a gloomy sky and big puffy snowflakes I procrastinated my run until early afternoon. At which point the sky cleared and the sun came out.

Enroute to the trailhead I encountered a coyote. He was moving quickly – then suddenly stopped, turned, and looked directly at me. Coyote often comes to me – he is the keeper of wisdom and folly. Coyote teaches us not to take ourselves so seriously and that anything is possible.

During my run I mulled over coyote and what he was teaching me. Then, while heading back home – I was pleasantly surprised to see this coyote AGAIN – he was running along my left side in the direction of my house – then he stopped and looked directly at me.

After more thought about this playful coyote – I decided to include my daughter in helping me pack for Ecuador. She is very excited about this adventure! Not just the mountaineering and climbing portions – but the fact that we will donate climbing gear to the Youth Climbing Club in Banos, Ecuador. Eli (and the other guides) consistently teach me how to be of service, no matter where I roam.

Polar Princess – over and out.

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3 comments

simon says:

Coyote talks to you; Fox talks to me...

Yo Princess!

Thanks for sharing the teaching

I was on the last but one lap of my "long run with tea breaks" the other weekend. I'd got into that "Go on, stop now, you've done enough" track, when -- just before the junction to my house (50 yards away) -- a fox ran out in front of me and trotted down the road in front of me.

It took a moment for me to realise what was going on; I was about to dismiss it when the thing got to the junction, turned its head to look at me... then kept on going. It left me no option :) In the British system I use, it sounds like the fox is the equivalent of your Coyote... yes, don't take yourself too seriously, it says... and is also see as "The Mirror of the Mind". Fox is highly intelligent and likes to win -- whic is one of the reasons I was out there in the snow in the first place.

by simon on Mon, 2007-01-29 02:01

Jill Salva says:

Hey simon -
this bloggin thing is interesting - and your fox tale too! on a winning front.....it is also interesting to see how focused runners are on time - that generally being the measure of "winning."

for an all-arounder like me, the winning is much more internal - the competition comes from within and against myself - it is more about the process itself and the act of running than fitting into a particular time/space :-)

by Jill Salva on Mon, 2007-01-29 13:38

simon says:

Jill, I'm a masters athlete. I DID win one race outright last year, but normally I am running with the idea of 'feeling the speed'. Sounds similar to what you are after; I am very kinesthetic that way, so I am seeking a particular quality of feeling.

If I improve my PR or beat people, that's cool too.

I think we should start a new forum topic and see what 'winning' means to other runners.

by simon on Tue, 2007-01-30 03:16