Morning Rituals and Reflections

Morning Rituals and Reflections

✍️ Author’s Note

This reflection grew from a simple prompt about morning rituals. At first, the answer seemed straightforward: a few small habits, nothing remarkable. But on second thought, the first hour of the day revealed itself as something more—a quiet passage from sleep to awareness, marked by light, music, and memory. What appears to be routine often turns out to be reflection in disguise.

What are your morning rituals? What does the first hour of your day look like?

Letters to the Prompt

Dear Prompt,

My friend, I do not have many rituals. Upon waking, I check my watch to see how I slept, visit the bathroom, step on the scale, and drink a glass of cold mineral water.

I am an early but slow riser. And upon further reflection, I realize that witnessing the sunrise holds deeper meaning for me. It is a daily reminder of life’s quiet beauty and the promise each new day carries.

Some mornings, I take an early walk in the nearby woods, watching nature stir from its slumber. As Laura Ingalls Wilder once said, “If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere.” It is a quote my brother once left me, and so I carry it with gratitude.

Those walks, especially when the first light spreads across the sky, bring both energy and grace—even when the sun hides briefly behind the clouds. Its fleeting appearance reminds me how precious our moments are. At my age, that awareness is never far away. Each sunrise feels like a gift, and I greet it knowing that one day it will be my last.

Most mornings, however, I remain indoors. I turn on Sonos and Idagio, and the gentle strains of classical adagios fill the room—Beethoven, Chopin, Mozart, and Vivaldi, my steadfast companions. As the coffee brews, I watch the slow arrival of light and welcome the quiet promise of the day.

With the first cup in hand, I ease into reality. I glance at my emails without opening them and skim the main newspapers, carefully avoiding the louder and more senseless corners of the world.

You might say that my first hour is one of awareness and harmony—a small island of order before the day unfolds with its usual uncertainties.

📌 Closing Quotation

“If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.”

— Cicero

William J J Houtzager, Aka WJJH, April 2025

📌 Blog Excerpt

My mornings are simple: a glass of water, soft music, a cup of coffee, and the slow arrival of daylight. Sometimes a walk among the trees, sometimes just the sunrise through the window. Nothing extraordinary—only the quiet awareness that each new day is a gift, and not one to be taken for granted.