I am not a morning person, but I sure do want to be one.

Waking up early is such a struggle. I do realize the morning tug-of-war begins with turning in late at night. That said, I know I should sleep earlier. But the bulk of my relaxation time comes in during late evenings after work — unwinding by playing video games, late dinners with the husband, a DVD before bedtime. I wanted to try waking up early one time though. It was difficult, but worth the try.

It started with setting the alarm 30 minutes earlier than usual. No pressing of snooze buttons allowed! Within those thirty minutes, I was able to:

Enjoy quiet time with myself. The sunlight was slowly streaming through the windows. There was a tall glass of hot lemon water across me. I was sitting quietly on the couch, not thinking of anything at all, just enjoying the calming bliss of that moment. Connecting with myself first thing in the morning was refreshing.

Calm my nerves. Getting out of bed is typically followed by my routine of heating water, munching on fruit, drinking water, taking a shower, rushing to work. It feels connecting the dots under time pressure. This time though, I was able to pace the chores in a gentle manner. There was no need to panic as there was more than enough time to get everything together.

Eat a good breakfast. Instead of eating breakfast at work, or worse, skipping the meal, I was able to prepare a healthy, filling morning meal. Better yet, I was able to enjoy every morsel of it. No quick munches on fruit, no big gulps of water to wash it down. It was a breakfast date with myself that I thoroughly enjoyed.

This went on for a couple of days until a late night sent me back to my old ways. Mornings were panicky again and I completely forgot about the beauty of those morning moments with myself.

And then I stumbled upon a post in Zen Habits called 10 Benefits of Rising Early and How to Do It. The entry talked of how getting up earlier is good for you, and shared tips on how to achieve that morning nirvana. While reading it, the memory of that early morning sunlight came back to me, and I resolved to greet the morning earlier than usual again.

It starts tomorrow.

Are you a morning person? Do you enjoy quiet times in the morning? Share your happy morning experiences. Let’s learn from each other.