Confession 120: Early Morning Wake-Up Calls

I woke up this morning around 4 A.M.  No idea why.  It could possibly be due to the fact that I went to bed around 9:30 last night and my body just cannot handle the thought of more than five or six hours sleep at a time.  As will happen when one wakes up before the sun rises, my brain started to race through a plethora of topics, none much conducive to sleep, except the thought of exercise.  There's nothing that incites hunkering down in bed to me more than a good workout!  I tell myself that the First Lady gets up at 4 A.M. to exercise, and if she can do it with all she's got going on, then surely I can too.  But, alas, here I am sitting in my work-out clothes exercising only my fingers.  Ah well... the day is still young.

The truth is, early morning has always been one of my favorite times.  Often, it is the only time to myself I will get throughout the day.  I like the quiet of dawn.  The sun rises gradually, no booming trumpets announcing the day.  First there is the hint of light, illuminating the darkness and revealing shadowy outlines of the world around.  Then there is a hint of color, inky blue bleeding into deep violet, and the shadowy figures come into focus; tall oaks, fat shrubs, a cat stealthily crossing the road after an evening carousing in the dark.  Then comes the pale pink glow of the sun simmering just below the horizon.  The birds wake, calling to each other through the leaves to herald the official break of day.  It is a symphony of sorts, the various calls, chirps, rustling of leaves and wings.  And finally, the sun is there, pale yellow and orange spilling over the sky.  The grass sits up, shaking off the dew so that the dew hovers above it in a fine white mist.

I cannot help but think of Psalm 30: 5-- "...weeping may last for a night, but joy comes in the morning".   And another favorite, Psalm 143: 8-- "Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you.  Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul."  There is something inherently hopeful in the dawning of a new day.  One of my favorite lines from Anne of Green Gables is when Miss Stacey tells Anne that each new day is like a blank slate waiting to be written upon.  Yet, I think it is a choice to write something new, to let go of the hurts, failures, frustrations of the day before, to raise a new song of praise to God for yet another day to try and get it right, to try and make a difference, to follow God with all our hearts, souls and minds.  (I can sometimes be of two minds!)  A new day is a new opportunity to live the lives God is calling us to live.  We still have our problems from yesterday, they don't magically disappear or get erased.  But our response to them can be new, can be hopeful, can be productive.

Yes, crazy as it seems, I love early mornings.  A new day is dawning--let's go catch it!

Blessings and Peace,
Sara