I love sleeping with the window open and letting the sounds and scents of nature tantalize my sleepy morning self.

The songbirds begin their chirping and singing long before the sun clears the horizon.  Their happy song is so full of joy.  And I hear a woodpecker.  I don’t know why I so love the staccato sound of the woodpecker’s pecking, but I do.  It is such a wonderful counterpoint to the birdsong.  And I hear the cawing of a crow.  A raucous and welcome addition to the morning chorus as well.

I gaze out into the green beauty of this Pennsylvania morn and I see a small squirrel leaping through the ever-growing grass.  I see a breeze stirring the leaves.  I smell something delightfully fragrant.  Roses?  Peonies?  Phlox?  I feel the damp dewiness of the air.  All of it – the sights, the sounds, the scents – are so delicious.  It is as if every living thing knows its part.  Everything has its special sound to add to the symphony, its special color to add to the tapestry, its special scent to add to the perfume of this June day.

I am so grateful to be a part of this natural world.  I may not be singing or casting forth a special scent, but I know my grateful loving presence is a part of this world as well.

What do you bring to this world today?  What song do you sing?  What beauty do you radiate?  What presence do you bring? 

If any piece of this morning were missing, it would be a sadder affair.  But all of it together brings such sweet magnificence. 

Let’s celebrate the Magnificence of Morning.  Let’s celebrate the Beauty of this sweet World of which we are a blessed part.