Morning Ritual
I have always found a morning ritual to be calming. It starts the day positively and gives you a feeling of accomplishment even before you do anything else.
As a child, my morning ritual was dictated by school. I woke up at a set time and proceeded to the bathroom to brush my teeth and comb my hair. Next, at the breakfast table, a small glass of orange juice was waiting for me with an empty bowl and spoon. I could choose which cereal I wanted and usually ate it dry as I abhor milk. Even chocolate milk grossed me out! I would gulp some water and go to the bedroom to get dressed for school. The weekends were different. I usually woke up at the same time I did for school, but I had time to turn on the TV, watch cartoons, or read one of my comic books or story books, and then join the family for breakfast when Mom called that it was ready. Most days, it was just Mom, my sister and I. When Dad was home for breakfast, it was a breakfast treat, like pancakes or an omelet.
Summer had an alternate ritual, but it was not that dissimilar.
Things change as you grow, and a job replaces school. You have a different schedule; nobody prepares your breakfast or makes your bed, and sometimes, there is no one to talk to at the table.
In my case, the following change was marriage. Now, two people had individual schedules, and my additional job was to have breakfast for someone else and me.
Within four years, I was a mother. My morning ritual was blown away. This baby and the subsequent one didn’t care at all what I would like to do in the morning. They took precedence and did for a long time. But things settled down, and a rhythm took place.
The following huge change is being an empty nester. It isn’t just the kids leaving home to be on their own; it’s also the changes that occur to you. Do you retire? Do you move away from the only place you’ve ever known? Do you find your tastes have changed, and the furnishings you have no longer appeal to you? What decisions can you make to enjoy this chapter of your life? Can you start over?
So many questions, but also a multitude of answers.
I can’t believe it has been 25 years since my husband and I had to answer those questions. Within 25 years of relocating, finding new friends, a new purpose and, most difficult of all, new doctors, I once again have a semblance of a morning ritual.
The dog now has a significant say in this ritual. Because of Evie, the dog, I wake up around 6 a.m. It’s okay most mornings, except very cold ones, when I just want to stay under the blanket! After I let her out and waited for her to return, I had a choice. Most mornings, I can return to bed, which is not an option, as I am up and sleep will not return. I often go to my iPad to play my once-a-day games, including Wordle, Mini Crossword, Connections, Spelling Bee and Strands. I also have a standing game of Boggle with my two kids. This morning, my streak of 192 games in Boggle disintegrated by choosing one wrong letter. I thought I had it in the bag, but well…. I lost. I don’t have the will to try and start another 192 streak.
My husband’s alarm goes off at 7:30, and he enters the kitchen to make the coffee. We have a little coffee station and use K-cups, so we only need to fill the water reservoir and press a button after selecting which pod to use. We sit there, the dog eagerly awaiting her coffee-time treat, and discuss the temperature outside and what, if any, activities we have that day.
This is followed by going back into the bedroom and getting dressed or showered and dressed if we haven’t done the shower the night before. Breakfast follows, and it’s the meal we both seem to help prepare. It’s not elaborate, but we have gotten it down to precise timing, such that the toast is hot and buttered just as the eggs are properly fried.
After the quick clean-up and indigestion from the news we watch while trying to enjoy our food, we clean up a few dishes and go on to our separate self-imposed assignments.
At this point, I realized I had never made the bed. I guess that is the post-breakfast reward.
