Rising Before Dawn
I always walk the dogs early in the morning. My favorite time is right at sunrise–whatever time that is.
Right now, it’s the beginning of November and I’m usually walking in the dark.
When Daylight Savings Time (DST) ends this weekend, I will get a little bit more of that beautiful morning light again for a while. You see, in 2023, DST was from March 12-November 5. It’s lighter, later. Now we go to Standard Time…lighter, earlier.
But here in Wisconsin, we sometimes get confused with the shortening length of daylight hours during this part of the year. Standard Time gives us more light early in the day. But it doesn’t do anything to change the fact that there are fewer hours of light each day. As a matter of fact, according to Google, “The December solstice (winter solstice) in Milwaukee is at 9:27 pm on Thursday, December 21, 2023. In terms of daylight, this day is 6 hours, 22 minutes shorter than the June solstice.”
The time change just moves when we get to see that daylight, earlier in the day, or later…
But really, that’s about it. I’d rather get the light in the am. When the day starts, I need energy. Coffee. Walking the dogs. A brightening sky…sunshine.
On the other hand, in the early evening, I make dinner, talk with my family, help with homework, and run errands. It’s dark and that’s ok. With the accomplishment of these activities, it’s wind-down time, and then bed.
I remember watching a movie many years ago and the protagonist woke up with her love interest in a New York bedroom. The sun was streaming in the window. They both expressed shock that they had to hurry to be at the office on time. I thought, ” I’ve only seen a sunny bedroom like that on weekends. NEVER on a weekday work day.” I always…usually…in my adult life have needed to get up in the dark to be able to do what was needed to prepare for the day.
Even if that preparation is only for my family–as to was during Covid–I still got up in the dark during most of the year.
The reason I get up so early is my desire to start the day with a sense of accomplishment.
I once listened to a new podcast that advertised a fresh approach to your morning routine. I thought that I would be shocked if I heard anything new. (This was after I had started to implement many of “The Miracle Morning” activities into my daily routine.) And guess what? He said, “If you aren’t accomplishing everything you want in the morning, wake up one hour earlier.”
Brain explosion!
He then backtracked a bit and encouraged listeners to try getting up 15 minutes earlier for four consecutive weeks until they had the time to do what they wanted in the morning.
I’ve worked diligently since I was in college to become a morning person. I like to get stuff done in the morning. It just feels good…like how even just making your bed sometimes gives me a feeling of accomplishment (or is that just me?).
So I vote for Standard Time.
I’m looking forward to falling back when I, and the other morning people, get to enjoy a few more rays of sunshine in the morning.
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