Since moving out of the city there have been lots of adjustments for me to get used to. The only shop in walking distance is one of those funny little local garages, for example, where you’re unlikely to find many food items that don’t come in a tin or a packet, so being ahead of the game in terms of meal planning is suddenly a must. I’ve also always been a fan of the marvellously fun but usually ill advised impromptu drink after work which ends way later than it should have on a week night – that now isn’t a possibility unless I make a designated driver (i.e Danny…) wait with me, fork out £20 for a train ticket or stop over at the Parent’s and have to wear yesterdays clothes to work! Even just living with another human being and considering their needs as well as your own is an adjustment when you’ve gotten used to being independent again. All very much first world problems, I know…
The biggest adjustment though, has been the early starts. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it before, but I am NOT a morning person, and I am used to taking all the shortcuts I can if that means getting even just a few more hours kip on a weekday! These days though, the commute, especially on a Monday, is over an hour and a half, and that is on a good day without crazy traffic or an accident on the motorway. I was not, as you can imagine, enthralled at the idea of setting an alarm that went off before 6am. 7am used to be an early start for me! But now that my body has started to get used to it, I’m actually kind of enjoying it!
Admittedly, this week we’re in that sweet little window immediately after the clocks change, when you get one last reminder of what it’s like to be up with the sunrise instead of spending your life seemingly entirely in the dark as can sometimes feel like the case during the Winter. As a pleasant surprise this morning, the sun was just peeking over the horizon as we set off just before 6.30, and everything looked rather charming. The fields were covered in sparkly frost, the sky was awash with pretty streaks of pink and orange, and every now and then we passed through rolling mists that glowed eerily in the early sunlight. I actually really enjoyed taking in the scenery and couldn’t help but wonder why I don’t pay attention to this kind of thing more often. Well, because I haven’t been getting up, of course. The sun has normally risen by 7am the rest of the year…
This time next week the sunrises will probably be a thing of the past, not making it over the horizon till I’m well ensconced at my desk in the office, but that isn’t actually the thing I’ve been enjoying the most. Actually, what I’ve come to love is that it’s become a little bit of quiet time with my beloved that no-one else gets to share. I’m up, I’m out of the house, but I still don’t have to start work for quite some time yet, at at 6.30 am that hour and a half stretches out in front of me in such a welcoming way, that I’d only have taken for granted if I spent it asleep. I love the fact that everything is so quiet and peaceful at that time. I’m so aware of the fact that so many people are still tucked up asleep, and once upon a time that would have made me mad with jealousy, but now I’m kinda smug I don’t have to share it with them all. It feels almost like a little secret that just me and my boy (and the hundreds of other people headed for the M40 on a Monday morning, but I mostly ignore them) know about.
Of course, it could also be because he bought me a portable coffee cup to keep my caffeine levels topped up….. Just a thought!
Love,
Picking the Day 