Starting the Day
There is a way,
To start the day.
But most of us, just jump into it,
And before we realize, it is time to exit.
Each day is precious, and the most important thing, if we really want to learn how to live life, is to understand how we must start each day. Technically, the day starts at midnight when the clock declares that the date has changed. But we have not even started our day. In fact, many of us have not even ended the previous one.
Our real day starts when we wake up in the morning. What do most of us do once we wake up? We jump into the day. We give over the day to our mind and we lose the day! The mind picks up all the chaos that we went to sleep with and starts bombarding us with thoughts. We visit something that happened the previous day, which may have a connection with our past. Then we jump into something that we have to do today and the many things that face us. We don't realize that we have already lost the day! We have given over the day to our mind and lost control of it.
But there is a way to take charge of each day. As the day starts, we can be conscious of the beginning of a wonderful new day. The best way to start the day is to start it with the sunrise. The fresh air of the morning skies and the chirping of the birds make us realize that a new life has bloomed. The light of the sun takes away all the darkness of doubt and despair that may have appeared the previous day.
Very few people are blessed to start each day with the sunrise. Is there any other better way to start the day than this?
To be able to steal a few hours or even minutes before dawn can be a priceless gift, a time where the whole world is asleep and all we can hear is the whistling of the breeze and the swaying of the trees. The sky reveals that the day will soon break, but one must sit in complete silence and be conscious of who we truly are. One must not let the mind start its monkey business. We must be still, aware and conscious of the Divine surroundings.
Most of us miss the early day and we just jump into the day either with a late start or a stressed-out mind. To add fuel to the fire, we bury our heads in the morning newspaper or glue our eyes to the breakfast television show where we drink in all the misery of the world. We watch how some people died, how someone was murdered, and all the other evils that unfold on the news. Then we read about how the stock market went up and down. We are attracted to products advertised that trigger desire in our senses and even before the day can start, we are lost in it.
What next? Then, we zoom through the day. Some of us are so busy that there is no time at all, while others are bored to death because they have nothing to do. We mostly fall into one of these two categories. But both kinds of people miss enjoying the gift of each day.
If only we become conscious of the day and what our purpose is for the next 24 hours, we would look forward to an exciting and fulfilling day. If only there was a purpose, then we would enjoy every moment of each day. There are some of us who are achievers and we start the day with excitement, looking forward to the day's success. But we don't realize that the way we are starting the day, will ultimately get us to a dead end. We may think that success and achievement is all that each day must create, but we have never stopped to realize what true success is all about.
We human beings have become like machines. Although we are 'human beings', we live as 'human doings', constantly doing things that start when the day is born. It's time to change our life and start each day in a new way. It is time to realize that every time we sleep, we wake up not just with the gift of a new day, but a new life. We mustn't just jump into the day, finish it, and consume it. We must catch hold of each day and try to discover life. We must use the day to make the best of this journey called 'Life'.
The next time you start a day, don't just jump into it. Stop! Become conscious of your surroundings. Look up at the skies, ponder about all the beauty that is around you, become conscious of your own heartbeat and your life. As you count your blessings, be still and contemplate – Who are you, why are you here? What is the purpose of your life and your day? Is this day just going to be another day that will pass away? We have a choice. We can start and finish each day, day after day, and before we even know it, life will be over.
The way to start living is to learn how to start each day. If we can become aware of a day, then we will become conscious of life itself. We will not let our mind jump into the day, even before our body does. We will shut it down as we live with awareness and consciousness about the day that is about to begin. If only we can learn how to start a day and live it, we can discover how to live life.
IN A NUTSHELL