Five Minute Friday: Morning

Every Friday Kate Motaung hosts a 5 minute free write at Heading Home, her place in cyberspace; the word prompt for this week is one of my all-time faves—Morning!!!!!.

More than once I've mentioned how much I enjoy somewhat official new beginnings: the start of the school year in late summer/early fall; the church's new year of grace that begins on the first Sunday of Advent; the first day of a new calendar year; my birthday. There's lunar new year, Jewish new year, and several others. There's the surprise of Resurrection—Easter is the ultimate new beginning!

Every single day the God of creation gifts us with a new morning, a brand-new beginning. I love the quality of early morning light—the fresh promise of another day. As the wheel of the year cycles from winter into spring and summer, I begin getting up before first light most mornings. That's early enough to experience the sun rise as it gradually surrounds the city with the possibility that's light and life. I'm also a classic morning person. With the exception of those rare occasions I get a burst of energy later in the day (second wind, I've heard it termed), I usually do my best thinking and most work in the morning.

For those of us who don't work second- or third-shift but keep a typical diurnal schedule, when we wake up and get out of bed in the morning, the day's already one-third spent, because in Hebrew chronology a new day begins at sundown: "And there was evening and there was morning, the first day .... evening and morning, the second day ... evening and morning, the third day ...." Genesis 1

An excellent devotional or blog or anytime project would be to discover and study the many scripture references to morning. I've illustrated this blog post with my interpretation of one of the most famous from Psalm 30:5.

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City Blues and Brights – City Lights

That we can be "City Lights!!!"

It's a morning glow – the kitchen at dawn.
City blues. The kitchen at dawn.
Come on, get up, wake up!
            It's a brand new morning!

Look out the window, look at the sky...
Watch the stars fade
            the night stars
             lights of night fade
          take some stars into your heart
Quick! Look up in the sky – look quickly.
          quietly, softly, look
            while still there's time
Circle some stars circle some stars
          to bring them into your heart

You're up, you're awake. You’re ready
You're ready, you're alive
          It's a brand new morning!
          It's a beautiful morning!
Hold onto the morning, day is breaking
        night is over
This is the sunshine place
It's a city bright

Take that heartful of stars you've
          borrowed from the sky
there's a basket over there
          set some of those stars
            into that basket
You'll need them in the darkness of your night.

Day's breaking
Day's broken all over the city
City blues     the city at dawn

Sit and savor the sunrise
            savor the day
bask in and savor the kitchen at daybreak
Watch that basket of stars
          guard that basketful of stars
Are the stars still in your heart?
          Delight in them    Hold them dear
          And share them
            Share them...

City blues, urban blues that is.
Sun's up     Morning's here

Morning's ready! There's a city out there
A big city out there A Great City
          get on out there and scratch for
            life
          hold on, hold on
      hold on.     Don’t let go.
Keep those stars in your heart
          and give all of them away.
There’s lots more where those came from.
This city will be a sunshine place.

Day's done, it's end o'day
Watch those stars in your heart,
            in that basket
Morning's over, so's afternoon
          it's evening now
            night's closing in...

It's sundown. Night's right at hand
Watch those stars in that basket,
            on that table
Watch them closely
          night's...almost...here

What promise will you offer the night?
What answer will you give to the night?
Night has dawned upon all of us
Night's here now
Now is the season of night
          sleep

You made a covenant with the day
The stars you show are its sign
Will your covenant enfold the night
            as well?

It's night now, darkness time
Stars in the basket on the table
Stars in your heart
          In your heart       Sleep quietly
            ...now...
Morning's on the way

© Leah Chang, 2000