Summer weekend mornings

Most mornings are a scramble. Slapped awake by the alarm clock. Blinded by the jarring shock of lamplight. Stumble to the bathroom. Fumble for contact lenses. Toothpaste. Gah, the water is never really warm enough when I step in the shower. And from there it's go, go, go - hair dryer, eyeliner, earrings, wrangle a kid to school, barely kiss a husband on the way out the door.

Breakfast? No time. Coffee? Ha. Lunch? Forgot to bring it - again. Hurry, hurry, no matter how early I get up.

Then sit in traffic.

Weekend mornings are supposed to be a reprieve from the workday chaos: sleeping late, lounging in PJs and watching TV. I do this when I can, but then I often find myself playing catch-up. The movie matinee starts soon and I haven't showered yet. The doorbell just rang and I'm still in PJs. A friend wants to grab lunch and do a little shopping, but my hair is a bird's nest. We need to leave for church and I haven't even finished my coffee.

And so it's the familiar morning scramble imposing on my weekend.

Saturday morning, I took a different approach. I slept until I woke on my own - no alarm - but instead of acknowledging the morning, comforting myself with "It's the weekend," and then rolling over to sleep another hour or so, I got up. It was early - depending on your definition of early - 7 a.m. or so, and I opted to take a quiet stroll around my yard and gardens, coffee in hand.

It was an overcast morning, which kept the summer temperature tolerable. I listened to birds chirp, cackle and chase. I hung out with my dog - the only other resident of my house who was awake - and just took it all in.

There was only one hiccup.

Hello, my name is Jax, and I immediately regret my decision to poop on the patio. I have ample green space for this purpose and it is unacceptable for me to misuse this space as such. I also regret having made this egregious error within the direct vicinity of my mommy while she was having her morning coffee on said patio. And while my given name is technically not "Dammit Jax" I now realize it is in my best interest to respond to it when called and not tuck my tail and try to hide from Mommy. I have learned my lesson and will do better in the future. - Sincerely, Jax.

I met the rest of my day at my own pace.

I enjoyed the start to my Saturday morning so much, I decided to continue the vibe this morning. Up shortly after 7 again, I sipped my coffee while curled up on the couch and then threw some comfy clothes on and headed up the road about a mile to the local high school, the school my son attends.

I walk here all the time, but this Sunday morning, without the hubbub of practices, tournaments, classes and other school-related activities going on (yes, even in summer), it was remarkably peaceful, almost park-like. In fact, there is a lovely garden in the back of the school that I usually whizz past while exercising, but decided to stop and explore a little more closely today.

I had a nice workout and was home in time to have breakfast and pull myself together for church. No rush, no fuss.

Not every weekend will lend itself to this sort of schedule. There will be many times when I need to sleep later out of necessity or get up much earlier to conquer a busy day before daylight.

But stepping out of the house when I don't actually need to, just for the mere enjoyment of it helped me see the day at its start - and the world around me - in a different, less hurried way.

"An early morning walk is a blessing for the whole day" - Henry David Thoreau