Slice of Life: The Gift and Curse of Mornings 4 of 31
For the month of March, I'll be writing with the Slice of Life community. Disclaimer: I'll be writing every day so the writing will be a bit unpolished most days. Thanks to Two Writing Teachers for bringing this community together and for inspiring me to try to find the stories that surround me each day.
Quietly I turn the handle on the door to our bedroom trying not to wake up my husband. It's 4:36 in the morning and I know there is not a chance I'm going back to sleep right now. As I walk through the doorway, I look down hoping the dog isn't asleep right by our door. It's hard to sneak out without arousing her, and her paws on the foyer floor will surely awaken my husband. Luckily, this morning as I creep into the foyer, I note Trudy still sleeping in her bed near the stairs. Even the dog knows it's too early to get up.
Walking into the living room, light illuminates from the sliding glass doors. The full moon makes it possible to walk around the kitchen without turning on a light. Outside I can see the trees and the water from recent rain even though it is still night. It's a beautiful sight, I pause to take it all in before grabbing a K-cup from the drawer. I place the decaf K-cup into the Keurig thinking maybe I'll be able to go back to sleep in an hour or two. Of course, that likely won't be the case.
Waking up early has been a gift and a curse for several years now. There's nothing like the quiet of the morning. It's this early wake-up that, during the week, gives me an hour or two to myself each morning before I head out for a busy day. It's this "extra time" that allows me to do a bit of writing or catch up on some reading. A cup of coffee by my side, this time is the perfect way to settle into the day.
I'm honestly a morning person by nature. Even when the kids were little my husband and I found our internal clocks to be a help. It wasn't hard for me to wake up before dawn to feed babies or to get up early with the kids. He, on the other hand, took the night shift because I couldn't stay awake to save my soul.
While quiet mornings are certainly a gift, this early morning wake-up becomes a curse at night. By seven o'clock each night I'm fighting to stay awake. Reading only complicates the matter as finding a cozy spot to read is a path to trouble. From seven to ten o'clock I fight the fight. Honestly, most nights, I do not see ten o'clock. So...I wake up at 4:36 in the morning and just enjoy the gift of quiet mornings.
Walking into the living room, light illuminates from the sliding glass doors. The full moon makes it possible to walk around the kitchen without turning on a light. Outside I can see the trees and the water from recent rain even though it is still night. It's a beautiful sight, I pause to take it all in before grabbing a K-cup from the drawer. I place the decaf K-cup into the Keurig thinking maybe I'll be able to go back to sleep in an hour or two. Of course, that likely won't be the case.
Waking up early has been a gift and a curse for several years now. There's nothing like the quiet of the morning. It's this early wake-up that, during the week, gives me an hour or two to myself each morning before I head out for a busy day. It's this "extra time" that allows me to do a bit of writing or catch up on some reading. A cup of coffee by my side, this time is the perfect way to settle into the day.
I'm honestly a morning person by nature. Even when the kids were little my husband and I found our internal clocks to be a help. It wasn't hard for me to wake up before dawn to feed babies or to get up early with the kids. He, on the other hand, took the night shift because I couldn't stay awake to save my soul.
While quiet mornings are certainly a gift, this early morning wake-up becomes a curse at night. By seven o'clock each night I'm fighting to stay awake. Reading only complicates the matter as finding a cozy spot to read is a path to trouble. From seven to ten o'clock I fight the fight. Honestly, most nights, I do not see ten o'clock. So...I wake up at 4:36 in the morning and just enjoy the gift of quiet mornings.
I am totally with you Cathy. I'm an early person too and sometimes have to be earlier than I would like to get accomplished what I need to do. By evening, 8:00 is hard to keep my eyes open. Early to bed, early to rise!
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to the days getting longer. It's a losing battle when it gets dark at 6 o'clock at night.
DeleteOh, this is me! The only thing that makes this challenge easier for me is that there is nobody I need to keep quiet for. It is a challenge to stay up at night (7:49PM and I am almost ready for bed!).
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I'm not the only one who struggles with this.
DeleteI also love the beauty of the morning solitude. The crispness in the air and the opportunity that awaits. It is during this time that I like to do my writing as well, although I often get distracted. Plus, you get the benefit of awesome sunrises! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteJessica, I sit by the sliding glass doors on the west side of our house so I usually witness the moon's descent. Maybe I should move to the front of the house to see if I can catch some of the morning sunrise.
DeleteI'm a morning gal too! And I have been since I was a little girl. This year, I'm trying to do my slicing in the morning.
ReplyDeleteCarol, I'm trying to do the same. I'm actually trying this year to stay one day ahead. So I wrote a post this morning, and hope to review it tomorrow morning before posting. Being a morning person does have its advantages --- especially in this challenge.
DeleteWhat a perfect slice! Wish I was more of a morning person :)
ReplyDeleteI wish I was a late night person. It would be great to be both, but I require too much sleep to ever pull that off.
DeleteI'm not naturally an early morning person, but have become so due to elementary hours and that need for quiet time. I'm glad you took the time to soak in the details that most sleepers miss.
ReplyDeleteYes, life does have a way of forcing us toward morning.
DeleteI am totally hitting that stage of life. I too have always been a morning person, but sleep is getting more difficult. Once I am up, I am up! I do love the quiet time to read, write, plan or exercise - but I also dream of rolling over and seeing 8:00 on the clock! Hope you get a nap today.
ReplyDeleteClare
I also wake up at 4:30 or so at least a few mornings a week. I do love that time alone, just me and the cats (the dog usually sleeps til 7 or 8!), time to read, write, do yoga. But yes, it does make parenting through the evening until my teenager is ready to head upstairs to bed rather challenging! Last night I fell asleep at 8 in front of the tv!
ReplyDeleteI love the early morning quiet, the slow but determined light, the moments of reflection.
ReplyDeleteI love the picture of you in your family room, during the early morning hours, snuggling in to your reading or whatever. I wish I was a morning person, but for now, I'm going to stick with my 7 AM wakeup calls.
ReplyDeleteThere is a lot to love about early morning moonlight accompanied by coffee and silence. I love how you described the tip toe creeping you did until you reached the safety of the living room.
ReplyDeleteOh, I wish I was a morning person, but alas I like my quiet evenings. Kids are in bed and husband is asleep on the couch. Time to myself. I need my sleep and I detest that beeping alarm! (Funny, I mention this in my slice for tomorrow!)
ReplyDelete