Thursday Tidbits

Posted on October 31, 2019 under Thursday Tidbits with no comments yet

 

24,918 sunrises and counting. None more spectacular than the one pictured above, taken with my IPhone this past Monday.

I can’t claim to have seen every single sunrise in my 68+ trips around the sun but I’ve seen a lot of them. Even when the sun doesn’t shine, you know it’s up there behind the clouds. It’s amazing when you’re flying somewhere. You can be experiencing the worst weather imaginable on the ground but before your plane reaches cruising altitude, the sun envelops you.

I’m a self-professed morning person. This is easily understandable when you grow up in a family of 10 with just one bathroom. You learn at a very early age to get up early and make a mad dash for the bathroom when it’s your turn lest you be s..t out of luck!

The rhythm of my life can be traced to early mornings.

It started with minor hockey when we would lace up our skates at home and walk through knee deep snow en route to the old Memorial rink. If Frank McGibbon hadn’t arrived, we would all muster in the boiler room to keep warm. I can still taste the sulphur in the coal.

Next up was my life as an altar boy. I served many early morning masses, including priest retreats. I also served private masses for the late Father Bernie Roddie.

My teenage years in the summer were spent at the local golf course. I would be up before the birds making my two egg salad sandwiches which were the only thing I would eat during the day. I played till my hands were raw, caddied, hunted for golf balls and eventually got a gig working in the Pro Shop. We lived 2.5 kilometres form the course. In addition to walking around the course all day, I walked to and from the course (uphill both ways?!) carrying a handful of used clubs.

I never had my own newspaper route but occasionally subbed in for one of my brothers. The deliveries started at 5:30 in the morning requiring first, a stop at Oak Manor, to pick up the papers and say hello to Ray Simpson.

When I got married, I would be up very early to read the morning paper while nursing life-saving coffee. As the years tumbled by, I started journaling in the wee hours, chronicling the daily lives of an ordinary family. Three binders with my hand written observations is a prized possession.

I became very active in my community serving on many boards and committees as well as town council and the school board. Breakfast meetings were all the rage back then and it was not uncommon to be sitting at a table at 6:30 a.m. with a coffee and a muffin discussing the pressing issues of the day.

My next serious addiction was fishing. After hunting for night crawlers the night before with my children, I could be found in the South River at 5:00 in the morning waiting for the sun to rise and the fish to bite. I have so many fond memories of the serenity and the beauty of these outings. Catching fish was secondary.

Later in life, I took up running and for the better part of 10 years, I pounded the highways, byways and backroads of Antigonish with arguably the greatest long distance runner Antigonish has produced. Charlene Druhan taught me about grit and determination. Whining was dealt with swiftly and irreverently! Charlene won her age division at the Boston Marathon a few years back against the best women from around the world. It was on these long walks that I really started to notice and appreciate the wonders of nature.

And then, purely by accident, at the age of 60, I discovered writing and most of you know how I spend some of my early mornings. But I don’t start penning my musings or tidbits before my morning walk. When my body finally protested after running several marathons, I took up walking and every day starts with a long, brisk walk. Most of my daily walks on the Camino started at 5:30 in the morning.

As you may have surmised, I am not a nighthawk so don’t bother trying to rouse me after 9:30 p.m.

None of us know how many more sunrises we will be granted.

Appreciate every one while you can.

“What I know for sure is that every sunrise is like a new page, a chance to right ourselves and receive each day in all its glory. Each day is a wonder.” Oprah Winfrey

Have a great day and Happy Halloween!