The Morning Race, January 31 Daily Reflection

What is your morning routine like at your house? Is it something like a race….

                Alarm clock buzzing right in your ear, half conscious you smack it until the snooze button is finally engaged and just like that you are out again, ahhh, unconsciousness so pleasant. Buzzing even louder than before, blurred vision, blinking because your contacts are not in yet to see the clock clearly, finally you recognize the numbers 5:30 am, here you go again. Waking the kids for school, dragging them out of bed, some literally by their ankles, “get up or we will all be late!” your voice still shaky from sleeping. Making breakfast, preparing lunches, checking backpacks, check the news for headlines, traffic and weather, you are getting closer to leaving the mess from breakfast behind in the kitchen sink! Finally 1 hour later everyone is ready to walk out the door, when of course it happens I forgot…my homework, my coat, my snack, my lunch, my laptop, my phone etc… “Get it and let’s go!”

                You race the clock to school. “When you get in the doors walk fast, don’t run, but walk fast or you will get another tardy note!” Love you, see you later, good luck on your test, have a good day, shut the door when you get out of the van please.” Finally you are alone in the car on your way to work, peace and quiet then you hit the traffic. No, not today you can’t be late today. Finally you make it to work. Chaos as usual, the people under you are idiots and your boss wants more than what is physically possible to complete on his desk before lunchtime, 32 emails are waiting in line for you to answer, 12 voicemails, a fresh pile of memos and you have yet to take off your coat!

Writing that makes me tense, reading it makes me anxious, living it stresses us all out! So how do we change this routine of stress racing the clock? Time always continues to tick away but the way we react to situations is all we can control. In order to combat those situations I have learned to be more prepared. Prepare the backpacks, lunches, laptop and clothes for the next day the night before. It sounds crazy but getting up earlier helps as well. When you get up earlier you have more time to breathe and not rush about. I have discovered when I get up earlier I fall asleep earlier which we also need to do in our lives.

We live in a hectic world but if we can slow down our mornings a bit by preparing more the night before and getting up earlier, just 15 minutes, we can set the tone for our entire day. Someone advised that each morning I read this prayer:

Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury,pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love. it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen

It truly sets the tone for my day. Try it for one week and see if it helps you as well.