Groggy, Sloggy Mornings

Are you feeling a little sleepy this morning?  Maybe it took a little longer than usual to trek down to the kitchen and retrieve your coffee.  You've got a hefty to-do list, but your energy level isn't rising to the surface just yet.  What can you accomplish on a groggy, sloggy morning like this one?  

All my life I've been a low-energy person.  Combine this tendency with being a night owl and you end up with having to choose between a slug or a sloth as your spirit animal.  Even in the exciting days of college my nickname was "Grama" because I was always napping in the daytime.  Yet, I worked for 40+ years, raised a couple of kids and still am hitched to Uncle Grumpy.

There are usually two days a month, on average, that I feel a tad peppy.  Other days I have to force myself to keep going, keep working, keep putting my hand to the wheel or the dust rag.  The rest of the time?  Here's what works for me:

I go outside.  Digging something or planting something or moving something from one spot in the yard to another.  Petting and brushing the cat.  Walking the dog.  Admiring the shape of the trees and the countless acorns in my path.  Appreciating all the work Uncle Grumpy does in moving the sticks out of the yard and cutting the weeds to make them look like a lawn.  Within minutes of being outside the fog and pressure behind my forehead lifts a little and I can think more clearly.  Like magic it works every time.

Inside I do what Flylady calls "baby steps" in taking care of the house and family.  I make the bed, even if I think I might wash the sheets later in the day.  The bathroom sink area gets wiped dry after brushing my teeth.  I put moisturizer and sunscreen on my face.  I clean a toilet or two, even if just the seats.  Out-of-place items on the kitchen counters get put away.  Containers and papers to recycle are scooped off surfaces and put in the bins.  I plug in the tiny light garland over the mantle so I can see it each time I walk down the hall and turn on soft lamps around the house, to brighten my mood and cast away the shadows.  Dusting or cleaning for 30 minutes or the time it takes to finish one room.  Small bites of the apple.

Is this the hour to start a new project?  No, but maybe later in the day.  Should I write a long letter to someone?  No, but maybe a postcard will suffice for now?  Should I start baking those complicated cookies for the holidays?  No, but look and see how much flour and sugar and vanilla there is on hand.  Baby steps.  These lead to improved brain connections and the possibility of accomplishing tasks with more steps, later in the day or evening.

After dinner, when my brain is firing at a normal pace, I can perform the creative, multi-step things I relish.  Working on photo albums, assembling and wrapping Christmas presents, planning holiday meals, calling a friend.  Then, forcing myself to turn down the steam a while before bedtime.  

The present I give myself just before bed is to clean up the kitchen counters.  It's a settling task and makes me feel very good about myself.  Then when I stumble down to the kitchen in the morning the place looks fairly straight and organized, which gives me a positive head start to my day.  I need all the help I can get in the mornings, when the world is bright and full of promise for many people.

Written with appreciation for Uncle Grumpy's efforts to make mornings more palatable for me, by his bringing me coffee in bed first thing, for over 30 years.