Roosters crowing, bells ringing, waves crashing…
For many, many years I awoke before sunrise…and often during the winter months, I would be driving to work in a cloak of darkness. Every morning was the same, waking to an alarm that was pleading, “Get out of bed!”
Fast forward three years, living abroad and traveling to places far and near. This morning, while on a trip to Marrakech, I was awoken by the birds on the rooftop terrace. I have found this is one of my favorite ways to wake, even though anyone who knows me is well aware of my irrational fear of birds, thinking they will swoop down and peck my eyeballs at any time. All warm and cozy in my bed, this fear does not affect my love of their morning songs. I slowly awaken from my slumber and think how my life is so very different now.
My first two years in Spain, my piso in Aranjuez overlooked a tree-lined street. Come spring, these trees were often filled with the songs and chatter of birds. I looked forward to the spring, leaving my french doors open all night, with the sheer curtain lightly blowing in the breeze and filling my piso with the smells and sounds of the Spanish night. Although the best part of this was hearing the birds outside at daybreak, talking and preparing for their day. There were many things I loved about my first apartment in Spain, and these mornings are high on my list.
It’s not only birds chirping in the morning that I have come to appreciate…the sounds of the cathedral bells ringing, while staying in my favorite AirBnB in Astorga. Roosters outside my bedroom window, while staying in a small coastal town in the south of Spain…and of course, crashing waves hitting the rocky cliffs while on a weekend get-away to the Canary Islands.
I know I am lucky and give thanks and gratitude daily for the life I have created for myself. It’s the little things in life, when added up all together that help make it a beautiful life. Waking up without an alarm just happens to be part of my beautiful life…and for that, I am thankful.
