I am not a get up before sunrise person. I am more of an awaken slowly and gently enter the day woman. Once my eyes are open and my feet are firmly on the floor, I have a ritual that I perform every morning. I move through the house, room to room, and open the wooden blinds covering each window, welcoming the morning sunlight. Even on overcast or rainy days, I invite the gray, feeble light to enter in and I express gratitude for another day.
Today’s first added a new ritual to my morning. The Sun Asanas are a series of 8 yoga poses that are traditionally performed in the morning to greet the new day. These poses caught my attention a couple of months ago, showing up on pages I’ve liked on Facebook. While I am no expert in yoga, I was intrigued.
This morning, I got up early, before the sun, and opened all the blinds. Lying back down, I stretched and watched for the first beams of sunlight to appear. As the bright golden rays streamed in through the windows and struck my bedroom door frame, I felt a stirring of joy within and a call to arise and greet this beautiful new day.
Standing on the rug in my living room, surrounded by a brilliance that was both fresh and ancient at the same time, I moved through the asanas, stretching and awakening my body and opening my heart. My body hummed with energy. I couldn’t help but smile. Good morning, sunbeams. Good morning, world!