love/hate relationship.

Hate.

Morning time tends to be a problem for me. No, more like a battle. My alarm goes off, I hit snooze. I hit snooze again & again & again- even sometimes in my sleep (which is entirely inconvenient because that's usually when I'm late to something or I miss class). Most nights before I doze off I think to myself, "tomorrow will be the day I will get out of bed the FIRST time my alarm goes off!" And then tomorrow comes...and my bed seemingly becomes warmer and more comfortable than ever. This is when the stronger part of my will comes in and crushes any thoughts of actually doing what I set out to do. Conclusion: this girl hates gettin out of bed in the morning.

Love.

But the thing is, I love everything about morning time. The grass is dewy, birds are chirping like crazy, no make-up, hair's a mess, and I get to be in my pj's for just a liiiittle bit longer. But there's one thing I love most about mornings: the peace! There is no other part of the day that is as peaceful as morning time. Jesus knew what He was doing getting up at the crack of dawn to go pray. And I am fairly certain I would be a happier person if I got up at 6:00 am before my early-rising family. I imagine myself just sitting on the deck, reading, praying, & being peaceful with nature. No distractions. No phone. Just peace. How could I have a bad day if I started it off like that?!

 I recently took a trip to the Dominican Republic. My group and I were only 10 minutes from the beach. So one morning a few of us got up early and walked to the beach. It was only 6:00 am, and the beach was practically empty. As I sat there listening to the waves crash onto shore, I was overwhelmed. Overwhelmed with the peacefulness of my surroundings. I'm accustomed to a busy schedule, racing non-stop thoughts, and being surrounded by man-made noise. So what was I supposed to do, just sit there and do nothing?! Exactly. Just sit there and admire my God-made surroundings.  But the breathtaking view of the enormous ocean, the sun rising, the fishermen casting their lines, and the feel of the sand and water hitting my toes was almost too much to bear. It sounds silly, even to me, but it was exactly how I felt. Overwhelmed and restless.

So, for now, I will keep trying to harness that peace and let it become a part of who I am, and I will keep enjoying the simple pleasure of a peaceful morning.