Good Mornings

Good Mornings
Artwork by Tu-2

Today the temperature took a u-turn, the morning is dark, there is stillness. The temperature is 46 degrees fahrenheit. (No heat in the house now for four days). Today is Friday.

Sometimes, waking up is a good feeling. There may have been a dream, a memory as the mind re-entered a reality we call daily life, or just a body that has rested well - no interruptions. Other times, the day starts with a jolt. It was an earthquake, a strong wind, a fire alarm.

Today feels like a good morning. Dreaming brought music, light, and color - the storyline got lost. But the feeling remained. This has happened before, when for some reason, the details don't stick but the feeling remains for a long time.

On good mornings with mom and dad, there is not much pain in mom's body - shrinking and bending into a new normal posture, but no pain is a good morning. And dad rests peacefully, not having much change in his condition, but needing a change to get the day started. If that's all that is in the encounter - that's a good morning. Hoping that there will be a peaceful transition one day, without the need for calling in emergency services, and without regrets when that day arrives. It is in keeping with what is happening in the moment, having the ability to be close enough to call in for support, that is a blessing.

There have been delightful mornings - beyond just good, too. Those are the mornings when watching the light come up, seeing the full moon linger before sun takes over, and having the time and space to walk by the sea are all mornings that are beyond good. These are precious moments that allow for the making of beautiful memories of really good mornings.

A lot of what gets done in life is making contributions into our memory banks. The deposits we make are the times we awake to a day that has all kinds of possibilities. The bank grows, with the choices we make to create moments of warmth, wonder, and sadness, too. These are the savings accounts that we are always building, sometimes not even realizing it until we reach a certain point in life when we find ourselves revisiting past experiences.

The good mornings are the ones that bring us into a day, knowing that anything can happen but we get a headstart because we begin with a feeling that makes us smile, and after that - who knows? Some joke that it's good morning when one just wakes up and gets out of bed without too many aches and pains. Even so, remember that the day you begin will add another deposit into the bank - the memory bank. And one day, there may be a need to take a lot of withdrawals in no particular order. Here's to good mornings, that lead to good days, that lead to memories to cherish.