Anyone who knows me, knows I love mornings. I feel my best, think my best, and work my best at the start of the day.

Just last week, I recognized something that I have always felt, but never really realized it until now. I had enjoyed a beautiful mostly productive morning. The time was approaching noon when there was a slight increase in tension in my body. My breathing increased a little. What stood out to me, however, and what was the most familiar to me about this time of day, especially on my day off, which, for the most part, I enjoy immensely, was a feeling similar to what I experience when approaching a deadline. A feeling that most of the good productive time is behind me, as well as the fresh thoughts, ambition and even relaxed creativity. Anxiety?

That recognition was an “in your face” moment of realization followed by intense curiosity about why my body has an actual physical response to the morning passing.

I wondered if it had anything to do with my childhood and my early-riser parents. We did everything early. If we were driving the 90 mins to see both sets of grandparents who lived in the same town, we were up and dressed, had breakfast and were heading out the door by 8am. If we were headed camping, fishing, or to the woods to cut, stack and haul firewood home in the pick up, we were out the door before the sun, done for the day, and eating lunch by noon or one o’clock. We would have made great farmers, if we didn’t live in town.

It donned on me that the other thing we did early was get up and do the housework on weekends and go to school on weekdays, so we could play later in the day after the work or schoolwork was done. Maybe this developed a pattern of productivity in the morning.

When I was younger and had more energy, I think I was a morning person AND a night person. Then I got older. The older me likes to be in bed earlier.

Sleep is more important to me now. They say sleep is healing. Whoever “they” is.

Speaking of sleep. I better get some. So I can feel rested for the morning. Goodnight.