Our "new" dog, Comet, (I say new because although we've had him since August, he is the newest of our 3 dogs), keeps waking up very early and having to go out. He whines and barks and generally makes enough noise to wake the neighbors. Since he was kind of "my idea", I feel it is my responsibility to get up with him and take him out. Since he is only about a year old (not positive of his age, he is a shelter dog, we don't know much about "his background"), he still has a lot of puppy energy. Which means he wants to play all the time. And he needs to run and chase things constantly. I don't mean to complain, he is really, really smart, and I love him. It's just hard to see some things at 5:00 am on a Sunday when you could be sleeping for a few more hours. Which is why I was surprised this morning when I took him outside. I was a bit grumpy, and then, as I sat on my front porch, throwing his toy for him to bring back, I listened to the birds and I watched the sun come up, and I saw my neighbor's beautiful maple tree turning one hundred shades of red and orange, and I took a deep breath, and I was glad I was up to see this. I mean, as they say, there will be plenty of time to sleep when we're dead. I'm usually in such a hurry in the morning to get the kids off to school, and to get ready for work, I hardly notice things. It occurred to me today how lucky I am. I have a warm place to live, and people I love, and there is so much beauty all around me. And then I thought, I'm pretty sure God wanted me to get up early and see this sunrise and count my blessings.
And I was happy.
