A while ago I read a lovely book by the wonderful Danny Gregory. In it he talks about how he creates an extra hour in his day by getting up early, and describes what he does with it.

For the longest time now I’ve been waking up very early. It doesn’t seem to matter what time I go to bed, my eyes snap open somewhere between 5.00 and 6.00am and that’s it, I’m awake. I used to think, partly because panic of using up my energy and not being able to have a “normal” day, that I just had to stay in bed and rest. Recently though I’ve been embracing my early mornings. I get up and make myself a cup of tea, potter in the kitchen, come back to bed and drink my tea and then just get up. I do a little yoga, have my bath, make a cup of coffee and then head out to my studio, not worrying that it is still dark outside.

Over the last couple of weeks I’ve noticed how tidy my kitchen is after my early hours pottering, how much I seem to be getting done in my studio (I’m bribing myself with the promise of a cooked breakfast if I stay out there for an hour and work) and how much less my joints creak and complain after a little yoga every morning.

By 2.00pm I’m ready for a nap, but after a satisfyingly production morning I even quite enjoy that.

Am I sounding like Pollyanna?