Those mornings

©Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

It was mornings like those that made all the difference.

Laying out the table looking into the garden. Feeling the calmness infuse inside you. Happily joining forces to cook up breakfast and willingly decorating and serving it as if you’re up for a Michelin star at a world-renowned restaurant.

Sitting down for a meal as if it’s the most important thing you’ll do all day. Savouring every moment of it. Because you know what matters is here and now. Being in that precise moment and nowhere else.

Preparing for the rest of the day with a simple process as this.

Also part of Friday Fictioneers

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The location to unravel

@MCD, Euboia, Greece

Imagine this: it’s morning – you know because the alarm clock just buzzed you out of your REM cycle. You have to get up to open the blinds so that sunlight can enter the room. As soon as you open the window, however, three cars begin to honk simultaneously because the driver in the front of the line was too busy sending an SMS to see that the green light had appeared. Seconds later an ambulance siren is heard nearing, so you shut the window in a rush to avoid further noise pollution. You’ll open it again later to allow air to circulate the room. Or maybe even better when you leave.

Now imagine this: you wake up by the rooster three houses down, announcing its morning. Sun rays have already entered the room, warming the bedsheets. You take a deep breath and stretch. You open the window and view the green field that stretches as far as your eye can see. All you can hear is the birds tweeting merrily. The flowers have bloomed granting the scenery a colourful spring touch. And a little further down ducks are happily bathing in the clear river water. You sit outside for breakfast and let your mind unravel. You unwind and feel more relaxed than your two-hour yoga class. You feel something you’ve been yearning for: relaxed.

Where would you rather be?

Life consists of moments and the choices we make leading up to them. Ultimately, we hold the key to our destination. And our physical (and mental) health.

 

Also part of Daily Prompt: Unravel

The intruding spring

Henry woke up when a bed spring penetrated his mattress and scratched his knee calf. The sting was enough to make him jump out of bed. Then, he had to get up.

He wasn’t a morning person. Not everybody is. Despite the fact that he was well aware of the French saying that the world belongs to those who get up early (“le monde appartient à ceux qui se lèvent tôt”); he was more of a supporter of the Italian one that it is sweet to do nothing (“dolce far niente”).

This was one of those mornings when he’d rather stay in bed. Henry was the type of person who upon knowing that he had a list of things to do, could not find the urge to do any of them. Instead, he would find other things to do, making his list grow longer.

He was the person who would always find something to do. His problem wasn’t not having something to do, but rather never having enough time to do it. Sometimes even desire.

But today it was different. The intruding spring made him realise that sometimes it is better to get up early because you enjoy more of the day, particularly on mornings illuminated by sunlight. Plus, you often have the chance to spend more time with the people you love.

So despite the inappropriate wake-up call, the day would develop much better and by nightfall Henry would be glad he was pushed out of bed so early.

There is always a more positive side to everything; if you’re open-hearted enough to see it.

Survivor Juice

He would never really wake up completely until that heady aroma of a pure Arabica blend drowning in a cup of too-hot-to-touch-the-mug water entered his nostrils. He eagerly awaited the warm trickle of this “survivor juice” down his throat and into his nervous system before he could even begin to plan the day.

Coffee was an essential part of waking up. Or rather of functioning at all.

And it had to be accompanied by an aroma that made its taste all the more enjoyable. On certain days, he even preferred it flavoured. Sometimes not too strong. Maybe with milk. And sugar. On others, he wanted a double espresso. You knew what type of day it was by the coffee he would drink. And the amount of cups he would consume.

Perhaps he was addicted to it. But isn’t most of the world?

Coffee has become the signature drink with which to start the day. It’s the “thing” that everyone loves, that everyone needs, everyone can share, and almost everyone can relate too. The easiest days were usually the ones were the dilemma was coffee or tea.

It also often depended on the time of day.

But whatever the choice, there had to be an aroma soothingly fuming from that warm drink. It made all the difference. As if it was telling the brain to prepare for a stimulating ride. And it usually was. It was those small moments that he would forget everything and just concentrate on the mug in his hand. It was the strength needed – the psychological boost – to survive yet another day.

 

Also part of Daily Prompt: Aromatic

Sleep disturbances

If an anticipated alarm clock sounds like a siren in your ears when you’re fast asleep, a telephone ringing to interrupt your peaceful moment can only be likened to a grenade exploding. Because apart from the unexpected disturbance, you wake up in panic, disoriented as to the time, date and sometimes, even the place you are in, and then with the added anguish that something is wrong.

That is how Larry felt on that Sunday morning.

He was used to sleeping in on weekends, because he had to somehow catch up on the “shut eye” he was so lacking during the week. So, no matter what time he went to bed on Friday and/or Saturday night, he would allow himself the luxury to wake up whatever time his organism felt right, having assured an adequate amount of sleep and rest. But, when he called it a night at 2am, he didn’t expect his phone to be ringing him out of his dream eight hours later.

It’s ruthless to be woken up so abruptly. Especially, on a day of rest.

But sometimes, it is worth it. Because the morning call Larry received was for a day out in the sunshine with friends he hadn’t seen for a while. He managed to jump out of bed and be ready in half an hour, although he needed an hour more to be fully functioning, but ended up having one of the greatest days he had had in a while.

Relaxing doesn’t necessarily mean lying in bed all day – especially if that is not a trait you’re used to. Often all you really need is enjoyable people, the right location and a pleasant mood to make your day a carefree experience.

And by the end of the day, you’ll be grateful you got up early.

 

“Every morning you have two choices: continue to sleep with your dreams or wake up and chase them”.

 

 

Also part of Daily Prompt: Price

Find your melons here

On a sunny Saturday morning, most people would like to sleep in – well a little later than usual that is – and maybe pass the rest of the day calmly, relax and have fun. I would know. I like to sleep in on weekends. But recently I have discovered something different for a Saturday morning. A place where you get fun, excitement, humor, puns, fresh food, smells of all sorts, and a lot of pushing and shoving. Something like a merry-go round only cheaper. And you get food out of it.

Farmers’ markets have been around for centuries. Producers get up even before the break of dawn to set up stalls with their fresh produce, ready to advertise that “they have the best [enter product here], yes it is true!”. They are markets that exist worldwide and reflect their local culture and economy. And (I never thought I would say this) but you can actually learn and observe a lot by visiting one.

For starters, even if you made an effort to get out of bed at 10am on a Saturday in order to go and purchase (cheap) fresh fruit at the market, the farmer who encourages you to taste before you buy, has been there since at least 5am and for him 10am is as good as noon.

You have so many stalls and products to choose from. The prices are evidently much much lower than at a commercial market, and the products are markedly better. Producers even cut open fruit and vegetables to demonstrate their freshness and ripeness. And you can actually smell that natural scent that unprocessed food is supposed to have.

Then if you visit such a market a couple of times, you realize that each producer has their own post. And they remember you. They might (eventually) even give you lower prices, since you’ve become a “frequent flyer”.

But the best part of the market, is observing the people there. The originality in the yelling that goes on to advertise the produce – “I’ve got the best melons, yes I do. Good for me!”; “You won’t believe the cherries I’m selling today”; “I’m practically giving my pears away”; “Hey lady, where are you going? You won’t see oranges like these elsewhere!”; “Sir, how about these fresh from the ground potatoes?”.

Then you see all these (mostly older) people pulling their market cart along and selecting the best produce with which to fill it up with. And they stop in the middle of the really narrow makeshift corridors, forcing the one behind who was abstractly glancing at the prices of the stall on the left to bump into them, and causing a pile-up of shoppers and trolleys, stepping on a few feet in the meantime. And the pushing and shoving is not something fun either.

But at the end of the day, you get fresh produce that ensure a healthy lifestyle plus you’ve had your dose of human socialization and reactions for the week!

It also shatters the delusions that farmers are folk of the lesser kind who simply grow crop and then try to sell them. From what it seems, they are the ones closer to nature, who still have a job, and who know how to appreciate the goods of life. So next time you see a farmers’ market, take a stroll over, you might even learn something while getting a taste of real food.