Dark and Early in the Morning

You've heard the expression bright and early in the morning? Well, I'd like to tell you about dark and early in the morning, and how it is quickly becoming my favorite time of day.

I've never been a morning person; as a teenager I slept in on the weekends often until early afternoon; as a college student, I much preferred the still and quiet of night to study which only reinforced the idea that mornings were for sleeping; as an adult, I got up if I had something to do, but much preferred to sleep in; as a mom, this became less and less of an option. Of course, because I have older children, I'm awakened to the smell a kid making waffles, not the cry of a baby, but I'm up regardless.

Enter a two year old, named Rocky, who is teaching me about dark and early, about the time of day I've been missing all these years - the time of day my husband has always preferred and I never understood why. Whether I want to or not now, I'm awake around 4:30am. I hit the snooze for about 15 minutes and then throw back the covers, pull on jeans and t-shirt and tuck my hair under a hat. The dogs watch me move around the room, lit by only one light so I don't wake Johnny, until they realize that it's for real, that I'm actually getting up. I kiss Johnny good-bye and follow 12 feet who barrel down the stairs. I'm out of the house a little after 5am, a Red Bull in hand.

Down a bumpy dirt road, I pull up to gates behind which sit a house and stables - both still dark and quiet. I pull in, turn off the engine and step out into the dark. It's hard not to look up at the stars - they are the only lights out. I walk into the stable, set my things down and check on Rocky. He is often still sleeping on the ground inside his stall and will let me come in, scratch his neck and ears, and give him kisses before he even stands up. Just like waking a sleeping baby...

The only sounds that early in the morning are my footsteps, the creak of the tack room door as I open it, and horses - their nays, the crunching of hay, and the rattling of buckets from horses waiting (impatiently) for their grain. I slip Rocky into his halter and lead him out of his stall and into the cross-ties to be brushed and groomed. He is usually still sleepy but loves to be scratched on his neck, extending it out as far as he can. If you scratch under his chin he will tuck his head down and turn it from side to side so you can get the right spot. Sometimes, when he's tied to the hitching post outside the stable, he rubs his chest and neck on the wood. You can tell when he's finally starting to 'wake up' because he'll start to nibble on, well, anything - my shirt, my leg, my back, my phone, or most recently my hair. I saddle him up, swap his halter for a bridle and lead him into the arena to stretch his legs before taking him on a sunrise trail ride.

By time the rest of the world is just waking up and reaching for the coffee, I've been on the back of a horse for an hour and watched the sun peek over the mountains and light the sky, bringing us into a brand new day. Maybe the sunrise is why I like dark and early so much...

Photo Credit: V Lowe (taken during one of our mountain morning rides....)