Morning Has Broken

Sun rises just off the Grand Canyon, Arizona

The older that I have gotten, the more important I have realized our cognizance of our status as morning birds or night owls. I definitely relish the first light of day and the many promises and opportunities with which the sun first rises. The majestic beauty of a canyon or the foreboding of an ocean-bound sound more profoundly impacts in the glitter of the morning light. A traditional hymn declares that “Morning has broken,” not slipped in, or snuck up on us, but rather that it has broken like a hundred panes of glass or a mirror as it strikes the floor. The night brings an absence of light, while the morning represents a reassertion of the power and glory of the day in all its brilliance!

Interesting that in my youth I more relished the night than the day, but with age I now jump out of bed in the morning, and at nighttime I drag toward bed. Regardless of our state, we must take heed of it, and ensure that we get the time that we need at either end of the day to strike a personal balance.

At times we find our balance in interesting ways, as I did in Foxton Beach on the north island

Today we are to set out for Milford Sound in 25 minutes, and yet I linger, enjoying the rain that falls outside my breakfast morning. Reception wakes, but I move not from my corner abode. The world arises and sleeps in as I quietly observe from behind my writing. Life is a quest to discover these small parts of the day in ever new ways and to learn that it is not all the same. Every new day brings with it new chances, new choices, and new opportunities, and we can either seize or be swept away by the forces that act on us.

Let us be movers and shakers and not fear what the world has in store, yet rather embrace and run wild with our dreams. Even if the thought only pervades the edge of our minds, and our uncertainty runs high, let us go for it!

Tim exits the brutally frigid water of the Azure Pools after screwing up the courage to get in, Daniel jumped off the 10m high bridge whose shadow hits the rock-face in the background

Pursue the slightest inkling of what your heart desires, and your heart will lead you onward. Use your mind to clear the way for your passions and dreams, for we live on these and not on rationality alone.

Take a trip around the world, run with your wildest inclinations, and do not look back until you have begun to achieve what you set out to accomplish. Then ponder your re-entry into the “real world” and consider how you may now impact it in a new way. You have the power to change your environment, you only need muster the courage to leverage your knowledge and experience against that which repels you in the culture to which you will return. Be not afraid, for some will reject you, will misunderstand your intentions, will not allow you to return home. But, as Jesus so eloquently stated, “Truly, I say to you, no prophet is acceptable in his own country” (Luke 4:24).

Crucifix centerpiece of the altar at St.Bernard’s Catholic Church where Fr. Gerry Fitzgibbon generously offered to let us stay free of charge

Thus shall you wander the world and seek out your answers to life’s questions, while at the same time conquering fears and fulfilling the deepest dreams of your heart.

Go for it. Do not ask too many questions, for then you will never leave. Instead, seize upon your dream and greet the new day. For anything is possible, and we need only have the audacity to dream it. The world is waiting. Be not afraid.

The midmorning light creates a rainbow through the mist over a lake en route to Milford Sound