early morning scenes – I Just Have to Say…

20170213_070818 — North Carolina, here comes the sun…

Early Morning

Early morning is really a collection of my favorite things.

As night wears on I begin to ache physically from inactivity and wake frequently. I am always relieved and eager to get out of bed when I smell the aroma of coffee at 6:30. I program the coffee maker the night before because it makes me feel like someone has anticipated my need and has been in the kitchen before me. I am easily fooled.

Although I hear traffic in the distance, I know no one is coming to the door, or calling at this hour. I used to have to prepare for the day and travel to work. But I don’t do that now and the change is refreshing. On the average day, I have at least two hours before there is anyone in my world that I must deal with. There is a lot of peace in this.

I read things carefully chosen to remain in my thinking during the day. Sometimes I have the luxury of thinking about a passage long enough to memorize. I have rediscovered memorization and it is a joy, a challenging joy.

I write. I give it all up, in my journal. Once it is out, I know myself better.

I sometimes make a list. I love lists and they actually help me get things done.

I watch light appear magically, making the night go away. And then I see it is the sun. On days like today it stays oddly dark and there is thunder, but I know the sun is out there because it always has been.

It’s early morning and I am alive for one more day. There is purpose in that and I am eager to find out what it will be (almost all the time…).

Florida sunrise and clouds Inter-coastal waterway

Florida double sunrise, pond reflections

*All photos private property, contact me for permission.

I go to Alki Beach quite a bit at evening, as do lots of other people, but who knew that people wake up and go there in the morning too? It’s a couple blocks away from the house and I don’t usually want to wait that long for the first coffee of the day. This morning I practiced delayed gratification and walked to coffee. There are four or five coffee shops in the short stretch along the beach (because this is Seattle…) but I go to the one farthest away because my daughter would consider joining me later at this one. She gets coffee that comes from a particular farm in a particular country (more on that later) while I ask if they have Folgers.

All kinds of things were happening this morning, the most interesting being an open water boat race of some sort. I got there just minutes before the starting horn so boats were lining up along some imaginary line which wasn’t very straight. I guess they were going quite a distance so a few feet here and there wasn’t going to matter. Anything that could be paddled was eligible for this trek across the sound to a rock near some island and back again. Naturally, the scullers took off in the lead and the poor guys on paddleboards were bringing up the rear. It’s a cool, gray day with a light chop on the water and mist in the air.

Cyclists are out. Families with children wanting donuts are straggling in. Seattle dogs are out in numbers. The weekend is here. Happy Saturday everyone!