A Gray Dawn Rising…

Good morning from the deep south, where the horizon wakes gently beneath a heavy, gray sky. The hush outside my window is almost tangible, as if the clouds have pressed their palm against the world, muffling even the birds’ earliest songs. The trees stand in silhouette, the moss draped limbs swaying ever so slightly in the breeze that seems to be sleeping in this morning as well. Not even a squirrel can be seen scrambling about their branches.

It is hard to feel alive in this gloomy beginning, the world seems to be paused, as if the day is considering if it will begin. Absent is even the usual cacophony of insects. As the breeze slowly starts to gain momentum, the sound of leftover rain and heavy dew dripping from the leaves is the only sound heard. The landscape is transformed by this monochrome palette, where every detail is softened and every sound is subdued.

Yet, beneath the gray, there’s a quiet beauty. The land feels suspended in time, waiting for the first shift of color or a break in the clouds. The deep south can surprise you on mornings like this—with its stillness, with a kind of grace that only emerges when you slow down enough to see it. Today, I’m content watching and listening, wrapped in the cool embrace of a southern dawn, wondering what the day will bring once the sun finds its way through the gloom.

This morning, I am finding my balance, just breathing in the peace found here on my Swampy Bottom Acres… We all need that place, the place our heart remembers, where we feel at ease, safe, as if the world can’t see us. Mine is here… There they come, my redbirds, coming to feed and say good morning. I enjoy their visits so.  I have watched them come to the feeder and bring their young to eat and visit as well. With all the rain lately, the world here is full of greenery, layers of varied green. The back fence is heavy with wild scuppernongs, the deer come for them. The squirrels are now chasing each other through the trees, even in the gloom they start their day. As for me, I would be satisfied to sit and watch all day, but life calls. But first Coffee, a chance to wake my brain and try to vanquish the dreams of last night and prepare for the onslaught of the day. In a bit, I’ll Walk among the gloom and waking nature, for later I must go out into the world of people and do. It is in this time that I feel closer to God, I talk to Him as I walk, as I sit and watch his creation wake and admire His work.

To be honest, I spend my mornings and my late nights avoiding… Avoiding the news, avoiding the bad energy that seems to come searching for me so diligently lately.  Trying to stave up my Jesus, prepare for what is coming. It has become so hard to accept the heaviness in the world. One day at a time, I can hear my Mama say… Keep moving and work it off Daddy would say. I say, just keep stepping, believing that there are more good people than bad and be kind to yourself, Life is hard enough on its own without you making it harder.
But in the gray stillness of the morning, it is as if I can feel it coming, the heaviness of the world, of life, my life. Time to crank up the music and let my soul find its rhythm, I hope you find your peace today… Mine is waiting for me outside…