"Night, the beloved. Night, when words fade and things come alive. When the destructive analysis of day is done, and all that is truly important becomes whole and sound again. When man reassembles his fragmentary self and grows with the calm of a tree." -Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Lately I have been waking up each night at 3:00AM. An odd time in my mind and surprisingly on the dot. At first it came upon me like a rude awakening in anticipation of the phone ringing. Yet the phone never rang, the daylight came and no bad news arrived.
The next time it was again, eyes wide open, roll over to look at the clock and "03:00 AM" staring boldly back at me. This time I lay awake not in anticipation of the phone, but questioning the significance of it. So I decided to research it, not in depth but enough to satisfy my curiosity.
The Internet is full of thoughtful responses to the question. It could be my internal clock is somehow adjusting its sleep cycle. To others it could be the 'witching' hour to the peak time of paranormal activity.
There are religious connections for Christians to 3:00 AM regarding the death and resurrection of Jesus. It is called the 'spiritual' time of night in which one should pray. I'm not certain what it is but thinking about it, I had the sense it was my mother waking me. I don't mean that in a literal way because she passed away from Pancreatic Cancer in 2008.
But it made sense to me in my overly active 3:00 AM mind. So I said a couple of prayers for the health of family and friends and also thought of my mother, having a short conversation with her in my mind.
In the bigger scheme of things, I can't tell you for sure what is causing me to awake at this time. I can't even tell myself for sure what I believe it is. It could be my internal clock, something spiritual, my mother's spirit talking to me or someone simply slamming a car door to go to work each day at 3:00 AM.
What I can tell you is that I'm using the time to reflect upon the coming day. I'm taking a few moments in the peaceful quiet of 3:00 AM to remember lessons learned and make the coming day a better one. It could be that 3:00 AM just happens to be my daily time to try and find enlightenment.
What ever it is, I'll enjoy it for as long as it lasts. I'll enjoy my short chats with Mom. I'll enjoy it as a time for prayer. I'll enjoy the quiet still of the night.
Find your moments in the bustling daylight or the stillness of night. Find a time to reflect, to capture a moment of zen or just to enjoy the quiet. It will refresh and renew your spirit for whatever lay in front of you.
