If it’s so easy for Gandalf to call on the aid of the eagles at any moment and in any location, why doesn’t he just do so right smack at the beginning of each of these difficult commutes and save everybody a lot of time, discomfort, injury and strife?

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey was too long and, worst of all, with the exception of a few moments involving Gandalf, young Bilbo, or Gollum, I didn’t believe in any of it. Sadness.

So. I’ve been observing a relevant difference between mornings when I wake up to my alarm (which is on my phone) and mornings when I have the freedom to wake up naturally. When I wake up to my alarm, this means that my phone is the first thing my hand touches. This further means that unthinkingly, in that blurry moment before I’m even truly conscious of being awake, the first thing I do is check my e-mail, and all those various other forms of input my wonderful, but dangerous, phone provides.

Since when is checking one’s e-mail (or text messages, or the news, or whatever else is coming in from outside) a worthy first act of the day? I would much prefer if my very first act of the day were to center myself around myself.  Then, once I remember who I am, open myself to whatever the world has for me today. But instead, rather than waking up and looking into myself, I tend to wake up and look into my phone.

I don’t think I’m in there.

I wish all of you luck finding your centers today 🙂