Nature: The Original Teacher
Learning from the Unhurried World
Step outside and notice what you see. A tree doesn’t struggle to grow. A river doesn’t strain to reach the sea. A bird flies on the same breeze that has always been here. Nothing in the natural world is rushing — and yet everything is quietly, faithfully accomplished. Long before there were books on presence, God gave us the earth as our first teacher.
In Choosing Presence, Jim Heaney names “mindful gardening or walking” among the simplest, most powerful spiritual practices — because presence and nature belong together. Nature does not perform. It does not watch the clock. It simply is what it is, moment to moment, season by season. When we sit quietly among trees, or stroll on the beach while counting the waves, our own breath begins to slow and match the rhythm of the natural world. We remember that we are not the exception to creation; we are part of it.
Jesus pointed us in the same direction. “Look at the birds of the air,” he said. “Consider the lilies of the field.” He was not offering mere words — he was offering a spiritual practice. Watching the natural world quiets the compulsive mind because the natural world is already at peace. It is already fully present. When realize our communion with nature, our own inner noise begins to lose its urgency, and God’s Spirit — the same Spirit hovering over creation from the very beginning — becomes nearer and easier to feel.
This week, go outside. Leave your devices behind. Let the original teacher teach you again.
Brian Mueller – Poet, Community Organizer, and Spiritual Guide
Brian Mueller is a poet and community organizer based in Dayton, Ohio. He serves as Director of Education & Engagement for ChoosingPresence.org and is an active member of the Ohio Chapter of Illuman, where he co-leads writing retreats that support men’s spiritual journeys. As a writer, Brian is known for his candid, accessible poetry, with works including Cock‑A‑Doodle‑Doo: 100 Morning Haiku, the Poem of the Day series, and the Bull Series. Inspired by poets like Rumi and Mary Oliver, he believes everyone carries the voice of a poet within.
