It’s 3:30 a.m. and I woke up before my alarm.

I couldn’t sleep. I don’t have insomnia.

Had I not gone to bed at 6 p.m. last night I would be wishing I could sleep the morning away like everyone else I know. Fortunately after nine hours of rest, I am ready to begin my day. And that’s just how I like it; a good night’s sleep followed by an early morning of quiet time is always a good choice.

Mornings to myself have become my thing as I grow older.

I roll out of bed, put on slippers and quietly pad into the crew kitchen of the fishing lodge I spent the summer working at as a cook. On this particular day, my kitchen partner was due in at any moment to set up for me so I could sleep in. I figured I’d give her a head start since I was already there and set up the kitchen for her while I waited for the coffee to brew.

Isn’t it everyone’s work fantasy to come in and have someone do your first bit of work for the day so you can move a little more leisurely?

The smallest gestures can start someone else’s day in a positive way; I remind myself of that with these small practices. That is why they continue to be an important part of my day. This small gesture was worth it to see her face light up in a smile when she walked in for work.

Acts of service to others are one way to empathize with the world and to begin the day with love.

Sitting on the front stoop of the log cabin I called home for the summer, I drank my coffee in the pre-sunrise light of the morning. This beautiful bay in my remote part of Alaska is breathtaking. At this hour there was a thick layer of mist and fog hovering like a white sheet over the water. The crows were yapping away as I walked from building to building.

I began this summer morning slowly and full of awareness.

Sitting in an attitude of gratefulness, I soaked in the beauty of the outdoors. I enjoyed quietly observing the animals waking up, the small splashes here and there on the water and the sun beginning to light the dark blues into warmer purple hues. I breathed it all in deeply, and slowly exhaled out.

Reflecting back on this summer, I loved these mornings when I could talk to myself slowly as the world woke up; when I can feed myself the words that will nourish my heart and my soul; when I could tell myself it’s okay to tend to this worry or to this pain because it won’t slow me down and there’s no one around to be bothered.

I will always love being outside in the morning and forming my bond with the earth first before any music, television, phones or people wake up.

It is all for me, this beautiful outdoors! I get the fresh oxygen, the Vitamin D my body needs, and I can tune in my spirit with what the environment is saying.

After some time in my morning meditation outside, I like to go back inside and write or read something inspirational. If something is bothering me, I write about it and try in my own way to work through my emotions so they won’t take control of my decision-making. Sometimes reading someone else’s advice or words is also just as helpful to set my mind in the right frame of thought. Watering and feeding the soul is essential and making sure to do so at the beginning and end of each day is a ritual I try to always practice. It is as important as it is for the body and can even outlast and make the body work longer.

This is my morning ritual and I am grateful for it. It is so important to make this a priority in one’s life. Let’s face it, if we are only relying on coffee to be our source of energy in the mornings, then we are doomed to crash by lunch time—emotionally and physically exhausted.

This is a simple, yet necessary health plan to take time when we need it so that we are not drained, but full of the love and positive attitude that will nourish not only our bodies, but those around us. If we discipline ourselves to start the day in this way, we create a solid foundation that can withstand all sorts of days. We find that we can handle stress a little better, we are not so easily swayed by emotions, and we are more clear-headed to handle daily decision-making.

When we are properly rested and then take the time to set the focus of our day in gratefulness—replenishing ourselves from the day before and gearing up for whatever the day may bring—we tune into the true buzz of the high vibration that comes from within the soul.

~

Author: Sarah Gilbert

Image: Mikesh Kaos/Unsplash

Editor: Caitlin Oriel