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Letting Go

I am an early riser.
Morning is my favourite time of the day.
During the school year, I'm up at 5:00 or earlier.
On weekends and holidays, I cut myself a little slack and set my alarm for 5:30 or 6:00.

The point is that I'm an early riser.

I get my best work done in the early morning. I answer emails, write, read (mostly for my doctoral program), and assess student papers all while having my first (and usually only) cup of coffee.

The house is quiet.
The promise of a new and improved day is palpable.
I feel at peace with myself.

And, then the dogs start barking...but that's another story.

During the past week, while we've been on a family vacation, I did not set my alarm or get up earlier than 8:30 in the morning. I didn't plan it this way. It just happened and I enjoyed "sleeping in".

This morning was a different story.

I woke up at 5:30 and felt fully awake and rested.

Should I get up or just lie in bed for another hour or two?

Was I done with getting up at the crack of dawn now that I was back home?

It didn't take long for me to decide. I felt awake and happy. My vacation sleep had rejuvenated me. It was time to get up.

I made myself some coffee.

I turned on my computer (I hadn't used it for over a week) and decided it was time to start my New Year's resolution early: "let go of what's not working".

I have already made this resolve public on Twitter and am now making a commitment on my blog; this SOL is one of my first attempts to practise my resolution.

Confused? Wondering what writing a SOL has to do with letting go of what's not working? I would be too if I were you. Well, it's quite simple really. When Tuesday rolls around I lament, regret and feel like a failure because I didn't post my SOL for yet another week. Well, I'm letting go of those negative feelings and I'm making time to write a SOL every week.

It feels good.

My first official act of letting go.

Cross-posted to Two Writing Teachers Slice of Life.

  
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