I Love Early Mornings

 

        Hello, gentle readers! Hope you are all well and staying safe!

        Well, folks, it’s another Sunday morning. It’s quiet in the house. Just the dogs and I are awake…well, I’m awake. They are snoring on the futon behind me because it’s still quite early—4:30am when I sat down to write this. After years of getting up at this time, I can no longer sleep in (on rare occasions, I will sleep until five, but that doesn’t happen very often). I don’t even need an alarm, just that internal clock I’ve been training for the past thirty years (hmmm, will I still get up at this time when I finally retire from the day job? I don’t know. Maybe, but why break a routine when it works so well?).

        It’s all good though.

        I love the early mornings when it’s quiet, when it’s still dark out, when my part of the world is just starting to stir. Seeing the sun rise on a brand new day is the best part of my day and it reminds me that I have much to be thankful for (and I am. I count my blessings every day). It’s the perfect time for me to write. Not because it’s early and it’s quiet (I can write anywhere at any time, whether it’s quiet or not) but because I have designated this time for me—before the day job, before everyone needs me, when it’s just me and my characters. I cherish this time with them because once the day belongs to other obligations, I don’t have time for the characters I have created.

        Sometimes, I’m lucky and the words are already in my head before I even sit down…they’ve been percolating in my brain while I slept and can’t wait to come out. Sometimes, it takes me a minute (and some coffee) to get those words flowing, and most days they do come (they might not be the right words, but that’s another story). I have had mornings where I’ve stared at the blinking cursor and had no words at all. Fortunately, there haven’t been many of those days (although, I will admit, with The Madam and Mr. MacLean, reaching my daily word count has been a struggle—I do get the words, it’s just that sometimes, they aren’t the right ones and they get ripped out).

        Speaking of The Madam and Mr. MacLean, I should get back to it before the rest of the world intrudes. Stay well! Stay safe! And remember to spread kindness wherever you go!

Marie