Words to live by

I have these mornings a lot. The roll-over-and-hope-it's-only-3am kind. The I'll-definitely-be-drinking-coffee-all-day kind. The mornings-are-the-worst kind. Recently, though, I've been trying to feel differently about mornings, to see them more graciously and greet them more eagerly and to use those five more minutes somewhere else in the day.

I think words, and how we use them, matter more than we usually admit. I think that when we wake up saying five more minutes, what we're saying, more often than not, is I'd rather not be part of this day. And even if that's only your thinking for a few minutes, I believe it has the power to impact the whole 24 hours.

When you wake up saying you'd rather not be part of the day, it's easy to see only problems, instead of successes. Mornings, like words, are gifts. They can encourage us or break us, and whether they encourage us or break us is largely our decision. And I get the not a morning person dilemma, because I'm not one, either. But if breakfast is the most important meal of the day, the thoughts with which we feed ourselves as we pull ourselves out of slumber are equally important.

There are countless words to live by. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all. In order to have a friend, you must be a friend. Take the path less traveled.

Greet this day with love in your heart and be grateful.

Use five minutes, that could be spent sleeping, being grateful that you woke up. Use five minutes to be kind. Use five minutes to be patient. Use five minutes to spread joy.

In a day made up of five more minutes, how are you spending yours?